IC tester adjusting unit

• US 20020079881A1
• Filed: 10/16/2001
• Published: 06/27/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 10/17/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yokogawa Electric Corporation
• Original Assignee: Ando Electric Co., Ltd. (Yokogawa Electric Corporation)
• Inventors: Hiromatsu, Katsuaki
• Granted Patent: US 6,552,559 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 324/158.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 1/06705 Apparatus for holding or moving single probes for moving multiple probe heads or ICs under test G01R31/2886

Abstract

A measuring probe can be positioned and set on signal pads 6 without providing positioning pins on a test board. An IC tester adjusting unit includes signal pads formed on a test board for testing operating characteristics of an IC to be tested by allowing the signal pads to contact the IC to be tested to input testing input signals to the IC to be tested, and by evaluating output signals outputted from the IC to be tested relative to the testing input signals. The IC tester adjusting unit further comprises a robot, a measuring probe, and a plurality of position correcting electrodes to which fixed voltages are applied discretely disposed on the test board, wherein the measuring probe is brought into contact with the signal pads when the measuring probe is moved by the robot, thereby detecting timing of the testing input signals supplied to the signal pads so as to adjust the timing of the testing input signals based on the result of detection, and wherein positions of the position correcting electrodes are detected by the measuring probe so as to prescribe a relative positional relation between a robot coordinate system of the robot and the test board.

Claims

1. An IC tester adjusting unit including signal pads formed on a test board for testing operating characteristics of an IC to be tested by allowing the signal pads to contact the IC to be tested to input testing input signals to the IC to be tested, and by evaluating output signals outputted from the IC to be tested relative to the testing input signals, said IC tester adjusting unit further comprising a robot, a measuring probe, and a plurality of position correcting electrodes to which fixed voltages are applied discretely disposed on the test board;

wherein the measuring probe is brought into contact with the signal pads when the measuring probe is moved by the robot, thereby detecting timing of the testing input signals supplied to the signal pads so as to adjust the timing of the testing input signals based on the result of detection; and

wherein positions of the position correcting electrodes are detected by the measuring probe so as to prescribe a relative positional relation between a robot coordinate system of the robot and the test board.

2. The IC tester adjusting unit according to claim 1, wherein three position correcting electrodes are disposed on the test board so as to form a triangle as large as possible while apexes of the triangle are expanded to the utmost on the test boards.

3. The IC tester adjusting unit according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the positions of the position correcting electrodes are detected by detecting voltages on the position correcting electrodes and a plurality of points around the periphery of the position correcting electrodes.

4. The IC tester adjusting unit according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein each position correcting electrode is circular, and a central point of each position correcting electrode is detected as a position of each position correcting electrode.

5. The IC tester adjusting unit according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the signal pads are used instead of the position correcting electrodes.