On line PROM handling system
First Claim
1. Apparatus for automatically programming and testing a programmable read-only memory (PROM) device of the type having a fuse corresponding to every bit in memory, the selective blowing of said fuses by the application of electrical pulses constituting the programming of said PROM, comprising:
- means electrically coupled to said PROM for programming said PROM with a predetermined bit pattern by the selective blowing of said fuses,means electrically coupled to said PROM for testing the access time required for said PROM to output said bit pattern contained within said PROM after completion of said programming, andmeans for transporting said PROM to said means for programming and to said means for testing.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Apparatus for the automatic inspecting, programming and testing of programmable read-only memory (PROM) devices. Under computer control, this PROM Handling System will test a sequence of PROMs against new part specifications, program them in any sequence of bit patterns required by the next piece of machinery on the assembly line, mark the PROM with a four digit part number identifying the bit pattern contained therein, dry the ink in a heated chamber for a fixed amount of time, dynamically test each PROM bit for access time in a hot and cold environment, program and test replacement PROMs for the ones that had failed at any point in the process, sort the PROMs into the correct order as required by the next assembly line machine and output said tested and ordered parts into output sticks for manual delivery or automatically deliver them by a track arrangement to the next machine. The programming apparatus can produce any type of electrical programming pulse and can test the device'"'"'s access speed through the use of programmable circuitry which can be automatically reconfigured by the computer to accomodate the various vendor specifications.
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Citations
25 Claims
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1. Apparatus for automatically programming and testing a programmable read-only memory (PROM) device of the type having a fuse corresponding to every bit in memory, the selective blowing of said fuses by the application of electrical pulses constituting the programming of said PROM, comprising:
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means electrically coupled to said PROM for programming said PROM with a predetermined bit pattern by the selective blowing of said fuses, means electrically coupled to said PROM for testing the access time required for said PROM to output said bit pattern contained within said PROM after completion of said programming, and means for transporting said PROM to said means for programming and to said means for testing. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A system for programming and testing programmable read-only memory (PROM) devices of the type programmable by electrical pulses, comprising:
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programming means for programming said PROM and for subsequently verifying that said PROM contains the bit pattern programmed into it, means for testing the access time and output state of each memory bit of said PROM, a computer for transmitting a bit pattern to said programming means for programming said PROM and for providing an identical bit pattern to said means for testing to test said PROM, and means for transporting said PROM to said programming means, and responsive to the completion of operation upon said PROM by said programming means for transporting said PROM to said means for testing. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A computer controlled method of automatically programming and testing a programmable read-only memory (PROM) comprising the steps of:
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first transporting said PROM to a programming station for making electrical contact between all leads of said PROM and said programming station, programming said PROM according to a pattern provided by said computer to said programming station, second transporting said PROM to a test station, and testing said PROM by comparing its contents with a pattern provided by said computer, which pattern is identical to the one used in said programming step, said testing to be performed to test that said PROM is capable of accessing data at a predetermined speed. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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Specification