JP2009266393A - Floating mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a floating mechanism in which a connection operation in a vertical direction and a horizontal direction and a connection operation in a horizontal direction can be operated using a floating mechanism of an identical structure. <P>SOLUTION: The floating mechanism is equipped with a holder of a block shape of which one surface is provided in contact with one of the face of a fixed plate, a holder hole which is formed in a prescribed depth from the other face of the fixed plate, a penetrating screw hole of a small diameter which is formed in the holder concentrically with the holder hole from the bottom face of the holder hole, a stud which has a screw screwed to the penetrating screw hole at one end and has a flange in the middle and of which the other end is locked to a movable plate by a locking means, a coil spring of which one end is installed on the flange and the other end is arranged protruding by a prescribed dimension from the other face of the fixed plate, and secures floating in perpendicular direction, a gap hole which is formed at the movable plate and has a prescribed space between the movable plate and the stud, and secures floating in a horizontal direction, and a fixing means to fix the movable plate to the fixed plate. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to a floating mechanism operable in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction.
For example, the present invention relates to a floating mechanism suitable for use in connection with a handler of a DUT unit disposed on the top of a test head of an LSI tester and a connection operation with a prober.

For example, a floating unit including a movable member and a fixed member may be used as an apparatus for inspecting an electronic component that requires fitting and alignment between surface mount connectors.
In this type of floating unit, the member on which the connector for inspection is formed is placed on the movable member, and the connector for inspection to be inspected is fitted to the connector for inspection, so that It is possible to inspect the conduction performance.

  Prior art documents related to the floating mechanism include the following.

JP-A-6-208785 JP 2006-32048 A

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the appearance of, for example, an LSI test apparatus to which the present invention is applied. 1 is a test head, and 2 is a DUT (Device Under Test) disposed on the test head.
In FIG. 5, the DUT 2 is configured to be operable in the XYZ directions by floating mechanisms provided at a plurality (for example, 3 to 4) of the test head 1.
Hereinafter, the horizontal direction is referred to as the XY direction, and the vertical direction is referred to as the Z direction.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional configuration diagram showing a conventional example of a floating mechanism operable in the X, Y, and Z directions, and shows one of the floating mechanisms provided at a plurality of positions described above.
In FIG. 6, reference numeral 10 denotes a holder. A large-diameter hole 11 is formed on the surface, and a through-hole 12 having a diameter smaller than that of the large-diameter hole is formed at the center of the bottom of the hole.

  Reference numeral 13 denotes a test head portion that functions as a fixed plate. The test head portion has a through-hole 14 having substantially the same diameter as the large-diameter hole 11 formed in the holder 10. The through-hole 14 extends the large-diameter hole 11 upward. In the state, it is fixed to the holder 10 by a plurality of fixing screws 15.

Reference numeral 16 denotes a coil spring disposed in the large-diameter hole 11 and having an outer diameter slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the large-diameter hole 11. One end is in contact with the bottom of the large-diameter hole 11 and the other end projects from the surface of the test head portion 13. It has become a state.
Reference numeral 17 denotes a stud arranged through the coil spring 16 and the through hole 12, and a collar 18 is fixed to one end by a fixing screw 19.

The other end of the stud 17 is in contact with the DUT base portion 20 that functions as a movable plate, and is fixed by a fixing screw 21.
The outer diameter of the stud 17 is formed to be small so as to have a gap (for example, 1 mm) indicated by a1 on one side with respect to the inner diameter of the through-hole 12, and the DUT base portion 20 operates up to about 2 mm in the XY direction. It is formed as possible.

In addition, the DUT base portion 20 that is a movable plate has a predetermined gap b in contact with the coil spring 16, and is formed so that the DUT base portion 20 can be operated, for example, about 4 mm in the Z direction. .
22 is a stepped hole, and 23 is a screw hole, which is used when the DUT base portion 20 is fixed to the test head 13.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the DUT base portion 20 is fixed to the test head portion 13 using a fixing screw 24.
As shown in the figure, the length of the coil spring 16 is shortened by pressing, and the lower portion of the stud 17 protrudes by the gap b shown in FIG.

  In the state shown in FIG. 6 (the state in which the DUT base portion 20 is not fixed to the test head portion 13 with the fixing screw 24) in the above description, the floating operation in the XYZ directions is possible when the handler is connected.

Such an apparatus has the following problems.
For example, when connecting a prober of an LSI tester, there is a problem that there is a problem that there is a floating in the Z direction as a connection condition. If the floating in the Z direction is fixed, only the floating in the XY direction must be used for connection. Don't be.
As another method, a probe ring which is a prober connection medium can be provided with a floating function. However, in this case, there is a problem in that the cost increases.

The object of the present invention is to solve the above problems.
For example, in the floating operation of the DUT portion of an LSI tester having a fixed plate and a movable plate, the handler connection operation (vertical and horizontal connection operation) and the prober connection operation (horizontal connection operation) are the same. An object of the present invention is to provide a floating mechanism that can be operated by using a floating mechanism having a configuration, and that can be easily connected and reduced in cost.

In order to achieve such a problem, in the present invention, in the floating mechanism of claim 1,
In the floating mechanism provided between the fixed plate and the movable plate, a block-shaped holder provided with one surface in contact with one surface of the fixed plate, and a predetermined depth from the other surface of the fixed plate. A holder hole formed in the holder, a small-diameter through screw hole provided in the holder concentrically with the holder hole from the bottom surface of the holder hole, and a threaded portion screwed into the through screw hole at one end. And a stud whose other end is locked to the movable plate by a locking means, and one end attached to the flange and the other end projecting a predetermined dimension from the other surface of the fixed plate. A coil spring that ensures floating in the vertical direction, and a predetermined gap is provided between the movable plate and the stud provided in the movable plate, so And a fixing means for fixing the movable plate to the fixed plate, and when the vertical floating is unnecessary, the stud is screwed in and the flange portion is attached to the bottom surface of the holder hole. The movable plate and the fixed plate are fixed by using the fixing means when the vertical floating is regulated by pressing and the horizontal floating is not necessary.

In the floating mechanism according to claim 2 of the present invention, in the floating mechanism according to claim 1,
A ring-shaped clearance ring having a flange portion in contact with the other end of the coil spring and provided between the clearance hole and the stud and having a clearance between the clearance hole and the stud; Features.

In the floating mechanism according to claim 3 of the present invention, in the floating mechanism according to claim 1 or 2,
The locking means includes a washer plate whose one surface is in contact with the outer surface of the movable plate and the other end of the stud, and a fixing screw for fixing the washer plate to the other end of the stud.

In the floating mechanism according to claim 4 of the present invention, in the floating mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The fixing means includes a screw hole provided in the fixed plate and a male screw provided in the movable plate and screwed into the screw hole.

In the floating mechanism according to claim 5 of the present invention, in the floating mechanism according to any one of claims 2 to 4,
A space body having a small friction coefficient is provided between the flange portion of the gap ring and the movable plate.

According to claim 1 of the present invention, there are the following effects.
Since the stud can function in the vertical and horizontal directions and the vertical movement can be switched to the restricted state, for example, the handler connection operation (vertical and horizontal directions) and the prober connection operation (horizontal direction) A floating mechanism that can be switched and operated using a floating mechanism having the same configuration is obtained.

  Therefore, the connecting operation in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction and the connecting operation in the horizontal direction can be performed by the same floating mechanism, and a floating mechanism capable of ensuring the easy connection and reducing the cost by common use is obtained.

  Also, when regulating the floating function in the vertical direction, there is no compression of the coil spring, so the force of spring compression is not necessary, and only by screwing the stud into the holder, without applying extra force, A floating mechanism capable of easily regulating the floating function is obtained.

According to claim 2 of the present invention, there are the following effects.
Since there is a ring-shaped gap ring that has a flange that touches the other end of the coil spring, is provided between the gap hole and the stud, and has a gap between the gap hole and the stud, the fixed plate And a floating mechanism that can easily absorb the tilt error between the movable plate and the movable plate.
Moreover, there is no fear that the other end of the coil spring will be caught in the gap hole, and there is no fear of wear, and a floating mechanism that can operate reliably can be obtained.

According to claim 3 of the present invention, there are the following effects.
Since the locking means is provided with a washer plate whose one surface is in contact with the outer surface of the movable plate and the other end of the stud, and a fixing screw for fixing the washer plate to the other end of the stud, an inexpensive locking means can be realized. A floating mechanism is obtained.

According to claim 4 of the present invention, there are the following effects.
Since the fixing means is provided with a screw hole provided in the fixed plate and a male screw provided in the movable plate and screwed into the screw hole, a floating mechanism capable of realizing an inexpensive fixing means is obtained.

According to claim 5 of the present invention, there are the following effects.
Since a space body having a small friction coefficient is provided between the flange portion of the gap ring and the movable plate, a floating mechanism capable of reducing the force required for the floating operation is obtained. In particular, a floating mechanism can be obtained that is effective when the weight of the movable plate portion is large.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the main part configuration of one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the main part configuration showing a state in which the operation in the Z direction of FIG. 1 is fixed and the floating operation is performed only in the XY direction. FIG. 3 is a main part configuration explanatory view showing a state in which all floating operations in the XYZ directions in FIG. 1 are fixed.
In the figure, configurations with the same symbols as in FIG. 5 represent the same functions.
Only the differences from FIG. 5 will be described below.

The holder 31 has a block shape in which one surface is in contact with one surface of the fixed plate 32.
In this case, the holder 31 is fixed to the fixing plate 32 with screws 311.
The holder hole 33 is formed at a predetermined depth from the other surface of the fixed plate 32.
The through screw hole 34 is provided in the holder 31 concentrically with the holder hole 33 from the bottom surface of the holder hole 33 and has a small diameter.

The stud 35 has a screw portion 36 that is screwed into the through screw hole 34 at one end, has a flange portion 37 in the middle, and the other end is locked to the movable plate 38 by a locking means 39.
In this case, the locking means 39 includes a washer plate 391 whose one surface is in contact with the outer surface of the movable plate 38 and the other end of the stud 35, and a fixing screw 392 that fixes the washer plate 391 to the other end of the stud 35. .
A collar 41 is fixed to one end of the stud 35 with a screw 42.

The coil spring 43 has one end attached to the flange portion 37 and the other end protruding from the other surface of the fixed plate 32 by a predetermined dimension “b” to ensure vertical floating.
The clearance hole 44 is provided in the movable plate 38, and a predetermined clearance is provided between the movable plate 38 and the stud 35 to ensure horizontal floating.

The fixing means 45 fixes the movable plate 38 to the fixed plate 32.
In this case, the fixing means 45 has a screw hole 451 provided in the fixed plate 32 and a screw 452 provided in the movable plate 38 and screwed into the screw hole 451.

The clearance ring 46 has a flange portion 461 that contacts the other end of the coil spring 43, is provided between the clearance hole 44 and the stud 35, and has clearances a1 and a2 between the clearance hole 44 and the stud 35, respectively. .
According to the configuration shown in FIG. 1, the movable plate 38 can be operated in the XYZ directions by the gaps a1, a2, and b.

In FIG. 2, the screw portion 36 formed at one end of the stud 35 is screwed into the through screw hole 34 formed in the bottom portion of the holder 31, and the flange portion 37 is pressed against the bottom surface of the holder hole 33 to regulate vertical floating. Indicates the state.
In such a state, the operation in the Z direction is restricted, and the movable plate 38 can perform a floating operation only in the XY direction.

3 shows the operation of the movable plate 38 and the fixed plate 32 by screwing a screw 452 screwed into the screw hole 451 into the screw hole 451 provided in the fixed plate 32 in addition to the state of FIG. Also shows a fixed state.
As a result, all floating operations in the XYZ directions are fixed.

As a result,
Since the stud 35 can be switched between a state in which the vertical floating operation can function and a restricted state in which the vertical floating operation cannot function, for example, an operation for handler connection (vertical direction and horizontal direction) and an operation for prober connection (horizontal direction) ) Can be switched and operated using a floating mechanism having the same structure.

  Therefore, the connecting operation in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction and the connecting operation in the horizontal direction can be performed by the same floating mechanism, and a floating mechanism capable of ensuring the easy connection and reducing the cost by sharing the parts can be obtained.

  Further, when the floating function in the vertical direction is restricted, since the coil spring 43 is not compressed, the force of spring compression is not necessary, and only by screwing the stud 35 into the holder 31, no extra force is applied. A floating mechanism that can easily regulate the vertical floating function is obtained.

A ring-shaped clearance ring 46 having a flange portion 461 in contact with the other end of the coil spring 43, provided between the clearance hole 44 and the stud 35, and having a clearance between the clearance hole 44 and the stud 35, respectively. Since it is provided, a floating mechanism that can easily absorb tilt errors between the fixed plate 32 and the movable plate 38 can be obtained.
Further, there is no fear that the other end of the coil spring 43 is caught in the gap hole 44, and there is no fear of causing wear, and a floating mechanism that can operate reliably is obtained.

  Since the locking means 39 is provided with a washer plate 391 whose one surface is in contact with the outer surface of the movable plate 38 and the other end of the stud 35, and a fixing screw 392 for fixing the washer plate 391 to the other end of the stud 35, it is inexpensive. Thus, a floating mechanism capable of realizing the proper locking means 39 is obtained.

  Since the fixing means 45 is provided with a screw hole 451 provided in the fixed plate 32 and a screw 452 provided in the movable plate 38 and screwed into the screw hole 451, a floating mechanism capable of realizing an inexpensive fixing means 45. Is obtained.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of the main part configuration of another embodiment of the present invention.
In FIG. 4, 51 is a space body provided between the flange portion 441 of the gap ring and the movable plate 38 and having a small friction coefficient.

  As a result, since the space body 51 having a small friction coefficient provided between the flange portion 441 of the gap ring and the movable plate 38 is provided, a floating mechanism that can reduce the force required for the floating operation is obtained. In particular, it is possible to obtain a floating mechanism that is effective when the weight of the movable plate 38 is large.

The above description merely shows a specific preferred embodiment for the purpose of explanation and illustration of the present invention.
Therefore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and includes many changes and modifications without departing from the essence thereof.

It is principal part structure explanatory drawing of one Example of this invention. FIG. 2 is a main part configuration explanatory view showing a state in which the operation in the Z direction of FIG. 1 is fixed and the floating operation is performed only in the XY direction. It is principal part structure explanatory drawing which shows the state which fixed all the floating operations of the XYZ direction of FIG. It is principal part structure explanatory drawing of the other Example of this invention. It is structure explanatory drawing of the prior art example generally used conventionally. It is principal part structure explanatory drawing of the floating mechanism generally used conventionally. FIG. 7 is a main part configuration explanatory view showing a state in which the operation in the Z direction in FIG. 6 is fixed and the floating operation is performed only in the XY direction.

Explanation of symbols

1 Test head 2 DUT
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Holder 11 Large diameter hole 12 Through hole 13 Test head part 14 Through hole 15 Fixing screw 16 Coil spring 17 Stud 18 Collar 19 Fixing screw 20 DUT base part 21 Fixing screw 22 Stepped hole 23 Screw hole 24 Fixing screw 31 Holder


32 fixing plate 33 holder hole 34 through screw hole 35 stud 36 screw part 37 collar part 38 movable plate 39 locking means 391 washer plate 392 fixing screw 41 collar 42 screw 43 coil spring 44 clearance hole 45 fixing means 451 screw hole 452 screw 46 Gap ring 461 Buttocks 51 Space body

Claims (5)

In the floating mechanism provided between the fixed plate and the movable plate,
A block-shaped holder provided with one surface in contact with one surface of the fixing plate;
A holder hole formed at a predetermined depth from the other surface of the fixing plate;
A small-diameter through screw hole provided in the holder concentrically with the holder hole from the bottom surface of the holder hole,
A stud having a threaded portion that engages with the through screw hole at one end, a flange portion in the middle, and the other end locked to the movable plate by a locking means;
A coil spring that has one end attached to the collar and the other end protruding a predetermined dimension from the other surface of the fixed plate to ensure vertical floating;
A gap hole provided in the movable plate and provided with a predetermined gap between the movable plate and the stud to ensure horizontal floating;
Fixing means for fixing the movable plate to the fixed plate, and when the vertical floating is unnecessary, the stud is screwed in and the flange is pressed against the bottom surface of the holder hole to regulate the vertical floating. And
When the horizontal floating is not required, the movable plate and the fixed plate are fixed by using the fixing means. A ring-shaped clearance ring having a flange portion in contact with the other end of the coil spring and provided between the clearance hole and the stud and having a clearance between the clearance hole and the stud; The floating mechanism according to claim 1. The locking means includes a washer plate whose one surface is in contact with the outer surface of the movable plate and the other end of the stud,
The floating mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising: a fixing screw that fixes the washer plate to the other end of the stud. The fixing means includes a screw hole provided in the fixing plate;
The floating mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising: a male screw provided on the movable plate and screwed into the screw hole. The floating mechanism according to any one of claims 2 to 4, further comprising a space body that is provided between the flange portion of the gap ring and the movable plate and has a small friction coefficient.

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