KR100546871B1 - Test handler - Google Patents

Abstract

A test handler is disclosed that can reduce the index time of the test tray and the loading and unloading time of the device. According to the present invention, two test chambers are disposed on both sides of an inner chamber for accommodating a test tray and heating (cooling) to a test temperature condition. Two test chambers are alternately configured to test two devices in two stages independently in both test chambers. In front of the test chamber, two extract chambers are installed so that a part thereof overlaps with the test chamber, thereby reducing the device being tested and discharged to room temperature. In addition, at least three tray alignment stations for distributing and aligning test trays discharged from each of the extract chambers are installed on the upper side of the extract chamber, and the tested devices are classified and classified and returned to the corresponding stockers. As a result, the two test heads do not index and work in conjunction with each other, and operate independently of each other, thereby completing the test of the device of each tray in two steps, thereby minimizing the index time of the test tray. The present invention also includes two orthogonal roberts for loaders, three orthogonal roberts for unloaders, eight set-plates for sorting devices, and four buffer trays. Thus, the time required for loading and unloading the device can be reduced.

Description

Test handler

The present invention relates to a test handler for connecting a device to be tested to a test head for testing an assembled semiconductor device, and classifying and loading the tested device according to the test result.

The device whose assembly process is completed in the manufacturing process of a semiconductor device goes through the test process which checks whether a predetermined function is finally performed. The test handler connects the semiconductor device to the tester in the test process as described above, and classifies the semiconductor device according to the test result and loads the grades. These test handlers return up to 32 devices to the test head for testing at the same time, and allow testing in special temperature environments, such as low or high temperatures.

A typical example of a test handler as described above is schematically illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, and FIG. 3 illustrates a transfer process of a test tray in a general test handler, which is briefly described as follows.

In the drawing, reference numeral 1 denotes a handler main body, and a storage unit 10 is located on the front part of the main body 1. The storage unit 10 is made up of 10 stockers 10a, some of which are loaded with a user tray containing a device to be tested, and some other stockers have been tested and sorted by grade. The user tray containing the device is loaded.

A soak chamber 20 and an exit chamber 30 are located at both rear sides of the main body 1, respectively. First and second test chambers (not specifically shown) are positioned below the main body 1 between the inner chamber 20 and the extract chamber 30, and a test tray 40 is positioned at the top thereof. A tray alignment station is installed. In addition, a plurality of set plates 50 are located in front of the tray alignment station, and a single loader for orthogonal device, which is a device transfer means between the user tray and the test tray 40 located on the set plate 50. Robert 60 and two unloader orthogonal Roberts 70 are provided on the upper part of the main body 1.

Here, the inner chamber 20 is a part for heating or cooling the device loaded in the test tray 40 to a desired temperature, and elevating-down the test tray to supply it to the first test chamber. The first and second test chambers maintain a constant temperature environment and are connected to each other by the device and the test head to perform the test, and have the same symmetrical structure. Tests are carried out for the 32 devices in the first test chamber and tests for the remaining 32 devices in the second test chamber. The extract chamber 30 is a portion for reducing the heated device to room temperature, and repeatedly performs an operation of elevating-up the test tray as opposed to the inner chamber. In addition, the set plate 50 individually positions the user trays stored in each stocker 10a of the storage unit 10 so that the orthogonal robert 60 and 70 pick up the device on the user tray or the user tray. Allow them to be put on On the other hand, the orthogonal robert 60, 70 is provided with eight hands to attract the device, and is driven continuously and repeatedly between the user tray and the test tray while being driven by the servo motor and the timing belt. The device is thereby transferred from the user tray to the test tray or from the test tray to the user tray.

On the other hand, although not shown in the drawings, the handler is provided with a transfer device for distributing the user tray to each stocker (10a), or to move to the set plate 50 for inspection, and also the test tray It further includes a control unit in which a conveyor device for vertical circulation to a loader, soaker, tester and unloader area, a driving source thereof, and a device for controlling the devices are embedded. In the drawings, reference numerals 80 and 90 are test heads.

The operation of the test handler as described above is as follows.

In the storage unit 10, the tray and the empty tray on which the device to be tested is stacked are stacked in multiple stages on each stocker 10a. When the operation switch is pressed, the transfer device transfers the user tray loaded with the device to be tested to the set plate 50 in the loader area, and then the orthogonal robert 60 for the loader is operated to place the user tray located on the set plate 50. Transfer the device on the test tray 40. The test tray 40 on which the device is loaded is placed at the bottom of the chamber by being heated or cooled to a desired temperature condition while passing through the chamber 20. The test tray 40 located at the bottom of the inner chamber 20 passes through the first test chamber and the second test chamber, and 32 devices are tested at one time by connecting to the sockets of the test head. The device is connected to the socket of the test head and tested. The test tray after the test is completed is sent to the lowermost end of the extract chamber 30, where it is reduced to approximate room temperature while being stepped up. The test tray located at the top of the extract chamber 30 is transferred to the tray alignment station in the unloader area, where each device is classified by the two orthogonal roberts 70 according to the test results. It is transferred to the unloader set plate 50. When the device is loaded on the user tray on the set plate 50, the user tray is transferred to the corresponding stocker 10a of the storage unit 10 by grade by the transfer apparatus and loaded. The transfer unit then refits the empty tray to the set plate and repeats the above operation until the inspection of one lot is completed.

However, the general test handler as described above, as shown in the test tray flow chart shown in FIG. 3, is tested from the inner chamber through the first test chamber and the second test chamber in turn, and then transferred to the ext chamber. As a result, there is a problem that the index time for loading and unloading the test tray into the test head is relatively long. In practice, this index time takes about 8 to 10 seconds. If the test time is 30 seconds, about 25% of time loss occurs.

In addition, the conventional test handler loads the device of the user tray into the test tray using one loader orthogonal robert for two loaders and the unloading robot for two unloaders, and unloads the device of the test tray into the user tray. There was a problem that it takes a lot of time to load and unload. Therefore, when the test time is less than 120 seconds, a neck phenomenon occurs that the unloader station stops working. Furthermore, when the test time is less than 60 seconds, not only the unloader but also the loader stops working. Is induced.

In addition, the conventional test handler has a problem in that the inner chamber, the first and second test chambers, and the extend chamber are continuously arranged in a plane, thereby increasing the appearance of the handler, thus requiring a large installation space.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a test handler which can improve productivity by reducing the index time of the test tray and the loading and unloading time of the device.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a test handler that can be compactly configured by arranging respective chambers by utilizing upper and lower vertical spaces of a main body.

In the test handler according to the present invention for achieving the above object, two test chambers are disposed on both sides of an inner chamber for accommodating a test tray and heating or cooling the test tray under a test temperature condition. Two test chambers alternately receive test trays discharged from this in common, characterized in that the test on 64 devices independently in both test chambers is configured to proceed in two steps.

In the front of the test chamber, two extract chambers are installed so that a portion thereof overlaps with each test chamber to reduce the device being tested and discharged to room temperature. In addition, at least three tray alignment stations are disposed on the upper side of the extract chamber to distribute and arrange the test trays discharged from each of the extract chambers. have.

As a result, the two test heads do not index and work together, and each of the two test heads operate independently, thereby completing the test of the devices of each tray in two steps, thereby reducing the transfer time between the test heads of the test trays, and thus indexing the test trays. Time can be minimized.

The present invention includes a loading means comprising two orthogonal roberts for loaders and an unloading means comprising three orthogonal roberts for unloaders. The loading means is installed on the upper side of the test chamber and transfers the device to be tested loaded on the user tray to the test tray. The unloading means is installed at the front of the extract chamber, and is distributed to the tray alignment station to classify the devices on the aligned test trays by class and transfer them to the user tray.

The present invention also includes eight set-plates for sorting devices and four buffer trays. Thus, the time required for loading and unloading the device can be reduced.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the test handler comprises: a handler body; Loading means configured on both sides of the rear portion of the main body and transferring the device to be tested on the user tray to the test tray; An inner chamber for accommodating a test tray containing a device transferred by the loading means and lowering step by step to heat or cool the device to a test temperature condition; First and second test chambers disposed on both sides of each of the inner chambers to alternately receive the test trays discharged from the inner chambers, and connect the devices to the test heads while maintaining a constant temperature environment; First and second extract chambers installed adjacent to the first and second test chambers to receive the test trays discharged from the respective test chambers and gradually raise the heated or cooled devices to room temperature; Unloading means for aligning the test trays discharged from the first and second extract chambers and classifying the test trays according to test results and transferring them to a user tray; A conveyor device for circulating test trays into loader, faster, tester and unloader areas; And a main controller that controls the operation of each of these devices.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described based on the accompanying drawings.

4 is a plan view showing a schematic structure of a test handler according to the present invention, FIGS. 5 and 6 are front and side views of FIG. 4, and FIG. 7 is a transfer process of a test tray in a test handler according to the present invention. Is a perspective view.

In the drawings, reference numeral 100 denotes a handler body. As shown, the inner chamber 101 is disposed in the central portion of the rear portion of the main body 100. The inner chamber 101 receives the test tray 200 containing the device to be tested and lowers it step by step while heating or cooling to a test temperature condition.

Two test chambers 102 and 102 ′ are disposed on both sides of the inner chamber 101 to alternately receive the test tray 200 discharged from the inner chamber 101. The test chambers 102 and 102 ′ connect each device loaded in the test tray 200 with a test head while maintaining a constant temperature environment, so that the test is performed. Each of the test chambers 102, 102 'operates independently and performs tests on 64 devices in two steps. That is, in the related art, two test chambers are continuously arranged, and the test tray is indexed by interlocking with the test trays arranged in this manner, thereby increasing the indexing time of the test trays. By arranging the first and second test chambers 102 and 102 ′ on both sides with the chamber 101 therebetween, the test tray 102 is shared with the test chamber 102 on both sides of the test chamber 102. ) 102 ′ are alternately received and tested independently of each other, thereby reducing the indexing time of the test tray by half.

In addition, the present invention is provided with loading means for transferring the device to be tested in the user tray to the test tray, respectively, on the upper sides of the first and second test chambers 102 and 102 '. The loading means includes a stocker 103 for a loader on which a user tray is loaded, a tray alignment station 104 where the test tray 200 is aligned, and a set-plate 105 above the stocker 103. Orthogonal robert 106 for the loader to transfer the plurality of positioned devices to the test tray 200 located in the tray alignment station 104. Although only the loading means of one side has been described above, the loading means of the other side has the same structure. In the drawing, reference numerals associated with the above-mentioned numerals, that is, 103 'to 106' are cited to indicate the other means of loading. That is, in the present invention, the device is loaded using two orthogonal roberts 106 and 106 'for the loader. Therefore, device loading time can be reduced.

In the present invention, two extract chambers 107 and 107 'are provided in front of the first and second test chambers 102 and 102'. The extract chambers 107 and 107 ′ receive and receive the test tray 200 discharged from the respective test chambers 102 and 102 ′ and gradually raise the heated or cooled device to room temperature. .

A third tray alignment station 108 is disposed between the first and second extract chambers 107, 107 ′, and the fourth and fifth portions are arranged on both sides of the third tray alignment station 108. Tray alignment stations 109 and 110 are each arranged. The fourth and fifth tray alignment stations 109 and 110 are located above the extract chambers 107 and 107 ′.

The third tray alignment station 108 receives a test tray 200 discharged from each of the extract chambers 107 and 107 ′ on both sides thereof. Here, some of the devices (specifically about 1/2) loaded on the test tray are unloaded, and some of the test trays on which the devices are unloaded are arranged on both side of the fourth and fifth tray alignment stations 109 ( Alternately transferred and aligned, where the unloading of the remaining devices takes place.

In front of the third, fourth and fifth tray alignment stations 108, 109 and 110, there are a number of (especially eight) unloader stockers used for empty tray input and bin sorting. 111 is disposed. Each of the unloader stockers 111 is loaded with a plurality of user trays, and the set-plates 112 located at the drawer of each stocker 111 have tray alignment stations 108 and 109. The device of the test tray 200 aligned with 110) is transferred. At this time, the devices transferred as described above are classified by bins and transferred to the corresponding set-plates, and three orthogonal roberts 113 for such transfer are installed on the upper side of the main body 100. That is, the present invention can reduce the unloading time of the tested device by having three orthogonal roberts for the unloader. Therefore, the neck phenomenon in the loader area or the unloader area can be eliminated, so that the time loss of the tester can be reduced.

Meanwhile, in the present invention, four buffer trays 114 are additionally provided in preparation for a neck phenomenon when the device is unloaded. This buffer tray 114 is installed utilizing the space at positions adjacent to the fourth and fifth tray alignment stations 109 and 110, as shown in FIG. 4, which is located within the operating region of the orthogonal robert 113. do.

Although not specifically illustrated in the drawings, the test handler according to the present invention may include other devices provided for driving the handler, for example, a test tray including a loader, a fastener, a tester, and an unloader area, in addition to the above-described configuration. Essentially, it includes a conveyor device or a motor drive for circulating the motor, and has a main controller for controlling the operation of each of the above components. Here, the main controller receives the test result by the communication between the tester and the handler to perform the sorting, and has a complex structure of a PC and a PLC. These essential components are the same as for a general handler, so detailed descriptions are omitted here.

In the drawings, reference numerals 300 and 300 'denote test heads.

Hereinafter, the operation of the test handler according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 7.

7 shows a flow of a test tray, in which ① and ② are loaded a new device, and ③, ④ and ⑤ are unloaded and sorted.

The test trays 201 and 201 'loaded with the new devices in ① and ② are introduced into the chamber through the left and right inlets of the upper chamber. The test tray 203 introduced into the inner chamber is soaked and transferred to the lowermost end of the chamber.

The tray transferred to the lowermost end of the inner chamber is transferred to the positions ⓐ and ⓑ in the test chambers at the left and right sides by the tray ejection device. The device contained in the test trays 204 and 204 'is tested in two stages. At this time, each test chamber operates independently and 64 devices are tested.

Tested test trays are transported to a separate chamber by a separate discharger, where they are desocked up in stages. The extract chamber is composed of three stages.

The trays which have been raised in the left and right two extraction chambers are transferred to the point?, That is, the third tray alignment station, and the tray 205 at the point? Is lifted to the point ③.

The orthogonal robert of this ③ station has eight hands, sorting 50% of the tested good devices.

The trays 206 and 206 'are then transferred to the left and right fourth and fifth tray alignment stations for sorting for the remaining devices.

The sorted empty tray is transferred back to the ① and ② stations and used for loading new devices. The sorted devices are then transported to the stocker and loaded.

In the process as described above, the stocker for the loader used for the new device is supplied to the ①, ② station without supplying the transfer device. However, the transfer speed of the left and right trays is unbalanced, and the balance is maintained using the transfer device only when final adjustment is necessary.

In the above ④ and ⑤ stations, the tray on the set-plate does not perform a replacement operation except that the device is completely loaded and replaced, and all three set-plates and two buffer trays are used to execute the tray. Here, three set-plates are used for sorting two of the good bins and one for sorting the larger number of reject bins.

The rest of the bins are not so large in size, so use two buffer trays, each of which can be used separately, or each tray can be divided into 4 parts for 4 minutes.

When the sorting of the device on the test tray just before the end of the test is completed, the final transfer operation is performed on the device on the buffer tray to the device on the set plate.

As described above, the test handler according to the present invention completes the test for each tray in two stages while the first test chamber and the second test chamber operate independently, thereby reducing the transfer time between the test heads of the trays. You can. In other words, the index time can be reduced to 4 to 5 seconds from the conventional 8 to 10 seconds.

In addition, the present invention includes two orthogonal roberts for loaders and three orthogonal roberts for loaders, and eight set-plates and four buffer trays for sorting, and thus the time required for loading and unloading the device. Can be reduced.

As described above, according to the present invention, the index time of the test tray can be minimized, and the time required for loading and unloading of the device can be reduced, thereby improving productivity. In addition, the present invention is arranged by each chamber, that is, the inner chamber, two test chambers and two extract chambers by utilizing the upper and lower vertical space of the body, it is possible to configure the appearance of the handler compactly. Therefore, the installation space can be reduced.

In the above has been shown and described with respect to a preferred embodiment for implementing a test handler according to the present invention, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, without departing from the gist of the invention claimed in the claims below Various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains, and such modifications are within the scope of the claims.

1 is a schematic perspective view of a typical test handler.

2 is a plan view showing a chamber arrangement of the general test handler shown in FIG.

3 is a perspective view showing a transfer process of a test tray in the general test handler shown in FIG.

4 is a plan view showing a schematic structure of a test handler according to the present invention;

5 is a front view.

6 is a side view.

7 is a perspective view showing a transfer process of the test tray in the test handler according to the present invention.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

100; handler body 101; inner chamber

102,102 '; Test chamber 103,103'; Stocker for loader

Tray alignment station for loader 105,105 'Set-plate for loader

106,106 '; Orthogonal Robert for Loaders 107,107'; Exch Chamber

Tray Alignment Station for Unloader

111; stocker for unloader 112; set-plate for unloader

113; orthogonal robert for unloader 114; buffer tray

200 to 206; test tray

Claims (6)

In order to test the assembled semiconductor device, the device to be tested is returned to the test head and connected to the test head, and the device that is tested and discharged is classified and loaded according to the grade according to the test result. A single chamber for receiving a test tray containing a device to be tested and heating or cooling it to a test temperature condition; First and second tests disposed on both sides of the inner chamber with the inner chamber interposed therebetween to alternately receive and receive a test tray discharged from the inner chamber, and to connect 64 devices to the test head while maintaining a constant temperature environment. chamber; First and second extract chambers disposed in front of the first and second test chambers, respectively, for receiving test trays discharged from the respective test chambers to reduce the device to room temperature; And And at least three tray alignment stations disposed on the upper sides of the first and second extract chambers, respectively, for distributing and aligning test trays discharged from each of the extract chambers. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising loading means for transferring a device to be tested loaded on a user tray to a test tray above the first and second test chambers on both sides of the inner chamber, respectively. A test handler, characterized in that the front of the chamber is provided with an unloading means for classifying the devices on the test tray arranged and arranged in the tray alignment station by class and transferring them to the user tray. 3. The loader according to claim 2, wherein the loading means includes two stocker loaders on which a user tray is loaded, a tray alignment station in which test trays are aligned by being disposed between the stocker and an inner chamber, and And an orthogonal robert for two loaders for transferring a device on a set-plate located on top of a stocker to a test tray located on the tray alignment station. 3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the unloading means includes a third tray alignment station for aligning the test trays discharged from the extract chamber, fourth and fifth tray alignment stations provided at both sides thereof, and a plurality of user trays. Eight unloader stockers and three orthogonal roberts for sorting and transferring the devices of the test tray aligned with the tray alignment station into a set-plate located at the top of the stocker; And 50% of the devices tested in the third tray alignment station are sorted and displaced, and sorting of the remaining devices in the fourth and fifth tray alignment stations on both sides thereof. 5. The test handler according to claim 4, wherein two buffer trays are arranged outside the tray alignment station for the unloader. Handler body; Stockers for loaders respectively disposed on both sides of the rear portion of the body; Orthogonal roberts for two loaders for transferring a device to be tested in a user tray on the stocker to a test tray; An inner chamber for receiving a test tray containing a device carried by the orthogonal robert for the loader, and lowering stepwise to heat or cool the device to a test temperature condition; First and second test chambers disposed on both sides of each of the inner chambers to alternately receive the test trays discharged from the inner chambers, and connect the devices to the test heads while maintaining a constant temperature environment; First and second extract chambers installed adjacent to the first and second test chambers to receive the test trays discharged from the respective test chambers and gradually raise the heated or cooled devices to room temperature; A third tray alignment station for aligning test trays discharged from said first and second extract chambers; Fourth and fifth tray alignment stations disposed on both sides of the third tray alignment station; Eight unloader stockers on which a plurality of user trays are stacked; Orthogonal roberts for three unloaders to classify and transfer the devices of a test tray aligned to the tray alignment station into a set-plate located at the top of the stocker; A conveyor device for circulating test trays into loader, faster, tester and unloader areas; And A test handler comprising a main controller that controls the operation of each of these devices.