JPH0726716Y2 - IC test connection tool - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of Device] [Industrial Application Field] This device relates to an IC test connector used in an IC test apparatus.

"Prior Art" IC test equipment is generally equipped with a performance board,
The IC under test and the test device are electrically connected via the performance board.

In other words, in the case of a test device that tests a completed IC, an IC socket is prepared on the performance board.
The IC to be tested is mounted in the socket, and the IC to be tested is electrically connected to the IC tester for testing.

On the other hand, in the case of a tester that conducts tests at the wafer stage in the manufacturing process, a performance board is equipped with a connector called a frog ring, and the probe card is connected to the performance board via this connector. The probe provided on the probe card is brought into contact with the terminal portion of the chip formed on the wafer to connect the chip on the wafer to the test apparatus.

The present invention relates to an improvement of a connector which is inserted between the performance board and the probe card to electrically connect the performance board and the probe card.

Both the performance board and the probe card are disk-shaped, and an IC socket or probe group is provided at the center of the disk.

Since the terminals of the IC socket and the probe group provided on the probe card are densely arranged in a small area, it is impossible to directly connect to another unit at this portion. For this reason, wiring conductors are radially extended from the central part, and each terminal of the IC socket or each probe of the probe group is electrically connected to the electrodes provided on the outer peripheral edge of the disk constituting the performance board and the probe card, and a wide area is formed. The area is used to form connections to other units such as test heads.

From such a background, a connector called a frog ring has a ring shape as shown in FIG. 6, and the pogo contact 2 is elastically projected and supported on the upper surface side and the lower surface side thereof, and the pogo contact 2 is The probe card and the performance board are electrically contacted by contacting the electrodes formed on the probe card and the performance board.

In a conventional connector, a ring-shaped housing 1 is made of a resin material, a hole is formed in the housing 1 made of the resin material, and a contact 2 is supported in the hole. That is, as shown in FIG. 7, the contact 2 is supported by being prevented from being pulled out at both ends of the metal pipe 3, and is elastically biased outward by the spring 4 provided inside the metal pipe 3. The metal pipe 3 is press-fitted into the hole formed in the housing 1 and the metal pipe 3 is fixed to the housing 1, whereby the pogo contact 2 is elastically projected and supported from the surface of the housing 1, and by this elasticity, the mating electrode I can make sure to make contact with each other. In other words, the number of contacts 2 ranges from several hundreds to several thousand, so in order to make such number of contacts fixed to the electrodes formed on the performance board and the probe card,
The flatness of the electrode formation surface must be high. However, since the contact is elastically supported by using the pogo contact 2, the contact can be surely reached even if the electrode formation surface is somewhat uneven.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In the structure of the conventional connector described above, if the pogo contact 2 becomes defective, replacement thereof is troublesome.

The electric circuit of the connector is composed of the pogo contact 2 and the metal pipe 3 supporting the pogo contact 2. Therefore, when viewed as a signal transmission line, there is a drawback that the impedance is disturbed at this portion and the waveform is deteriorated.

An object of the present invention is to provide an IC test connector which can easily replace the pogo contact 2 and can transmit a signal in a state where impedance matching is achieved.

[Means for Solving the Problems] According to the present invention, a printed board having a plurality of signal transmission lines formed in a state where transmission impedances are matched is formed between two sides parallel to each other. A pogo contact electrically and mechanically coupled to and supported by the signal transmission line, a frog card composed of a pin holder covering the mounting surface of the pogo contact, and a groove for radially accommodating the frog card. An IC test connector is configured by a ring housing that supports the contacts in a posture in which the contacts elastically protrude in the vertical direction.

According to the structure of the present invention, the pogo contact is attached to and supported by the frog card. Therefore, when the Pogo contact becomes defective, you can replace the frog card,
Pogo contacts can be easily replaced.

Further, since the signal transmission path formed on the printed board is formed in a state where impedance matching is achieved, the signal waveform does not deteriorate at the connecting part. Therefore, the IC under test and the test device can be connected by a high-quality signal transmission path.

"Embodiment" FIGS. 1 to 5 show an embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure, 10 is a frog card and 20 is a ring housing.

The frog card 10 has a printed board 11 and this printed board 11
And a pin holder 13 that covers the mounting surface of the pogo contact 12. The printed board 11 is a signal transmission line 14 whose impedance is matched by a microstrip line structure as shown in FIG.
It is equipped with. As is well known, the signal transmission path 14 of the microstrip line structure is formed by forming a ground conductor 14A on one surface of a printed board and forming a signal line 14B on the other surface of the printed board so as to face the ground conductor 14A. . The example shown in the figure shows a case where four sets of signal transmission paths 14 are formed on one printed board 11.

The pogo contact 12 is electrically and mechanically coupled and attached to the signal line 14B constituting the microstrip line. In the example of the figure, the ground conductor 14A is also connected to the signal line 14B through the through-home.
The case where the pogo contact 12 for connecting the ground circuit is arranged on the formation surface of the signal line 14B is shown.

The mounting surface of the pogo contact 12 is covered with a pin holder 13 having a groove for housing the pogo contact 12. Pin holder
The pin holder 13 is made of an insulating resin material and has a coupling claw for coupling with the printed board 11.
The frog card 10 is formed by uniting 13 and the printed board 11.

The frog card 10 is inserted into the ring housing 20 shown in FIG. The ring housing 20 has a groove 21 as shown in FIG. 4, and the groove 21 allows the frog card 10 to be supported radially. For this purpose, the rail guides 22 are adhered along the circumferential wall surfaces of the groove 21 that face each other, and
The frog card 10 is inserted into the groove 22A of the groove 22 to support the plate surface of the frog card 10 in a direction parallel to the radiation passing through the center of the ring housing 20.

Projecting pieces 23 project from both sides on the bottom surface side of the concave groove 21 formed in the ring housing 20, and the projecting pieces 23 prevent the rail guide 22 and the frog card 10 from coming out downward. In the rail guide 22, concave grooves 22A are formed in an array on one surface of a rectangular plate formed of a flexible resin material, and the plates formed of the flexible resin material are arranged along an arc of the ring housing 20. It is bent and attached to two inner surfaces of the concave groove 21.

With the frog card 10 inserted and supported in the concave groove 22A of the rail guide 22, a frame-shaped pressing member 24 is covered on the upper open surface of the concave groove 21, and the pressing member 24 is fixed with screws 25. By attaching the retainer 24, the rail guide 22 and the frog card 10 are retained in the vertical direction and prevented from coming off. Therefore, in this state, as shown in FIG.
Pogo contacts (12) protruding from the frog card (10) are arranged in an annular shape on the upper and lower surfaces of the.

[Advantage of Invention] As described above, according to this invention, the pogo contact 12 is supported by the frog card 10 and mounted on the ring housing 20. Therefore, when the pogo contact 12 becomes defective, the frog card 10 supporting the defective pogo contact 12 may be replaced. The frog card 10 can be easily installed by removing the holding member 24. Therefore, it is possible to provide a connector which is easy to maintain and easy to use.

Further, according to this invention, the pogo contact 12 is attached to the printed board 11
Since the frog card 10 is electrically connected to and supported by the impedance-matched signal transmission path formed in the above, the frog card 10 can provide the impedance-matched signal transmission path. Therefore, the signal waveform is not disturbed at the connecting part, and a good signal transmission path can be constructed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view for explaining the structure of a ring housing used in the embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is an impedance formed on a printed board. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the structure of a matched signal transmission path, FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view for explaining a housed state of a frog card in a ring housing, and FIG.
The figure is a similar sectional view, FIG. 6 is a perspective view for explaining the conventional technique, and FIG. 7 is a sectional view thereof. 10: Frog card, 11: Printed board, 12: Pogo contact, 13: Pin holder, 20: Ring housing, 21: Recessed groove, 2
2: Rail guide.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Creator Kunio Takeuchi 1-32-1, Asahi-cho, Nerima-ku, Tokyo Inside Advantest Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-57-194367 (JP, A) JP-A- 64-53429 (JP, A) JP-A-63-293934 (JP, A)

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A. A grounding conductor is formed on one surface of an insulating plate, and a plurality of signal conductors are formed on the other surface of the insulating plate, and a plurality of signal transmission lines in a state of impedance matching are parallel to each other. A printed circuit board formed between the sides, a plurality of pogos electrically connected to the signal conductors and the ground conductors formed on the printed circuit board, and with the contacts elastically protruding from the two sides of the printed circuit board. A frog card composed of a contact and a pin holder that covers the mounting surface of this pogo contact, and B. a groove for radially accommodating this frog card, and a plurality of pogo contacts that are elastically projected vertically An IC test connector made up of a ring housing that supports the frog card.