Abstract: An electron emitter plate (110) for an FED image display has an extraction (gate) electrode (22) spaced by an insulating spacer (125) from a cathode electrode including a conductive mesh (18). Arrays of microtips (14) are located in mesh spacings (16), within apertures (26) formed in extraction electrode (22) and subcavities (141) formed through apertures (26) in insulating spacer (125). Subcavities (141a) are open to row-adjacent and column-adjacent subcavities (141b, 141c) to form larger main cavities (144). Posts (143) of insulating spacer (125) separate diagonally-adjacent cavities (141d). Subcavities (141) are formed by over-etching a layer of insulating spacer material (25) through apertures (26) before or after forming microtips (14) through the same apertures (26). Over-etching reduces the dielectric constant factor of gate-to-cathode capacitance in the finished structure.

Abstract: To assure the continuity of bonding by preventing any buckling of a covered wire or slipping-off of the covered wire from a second clamper, the second clamper is caused to vibrate while a capillary and first clamper are being raised to a ball formation level after the first clamper is closed and the second clamper is opened in the step of raising the capillary and first clamper to the ball formation level, thus preventing the covered wire from sticking to the second clamper.

Abstract: A wire bonding machine has a wire bonding head that provides five directions of movement or degrees of freedom. The radial direction of movement supports the wire bonding process and reduces the moving mass of the wire bonder during the generation of the wire bonds. The wire bonding machine further includes a selectable side view inspection system. Through a group of optical components, the assembly process can be selectively viewed from either a side view or a top view. The side view of the assembly process provides for improved analysis of the wire bond quality which can be monitored by a camera.

Abstract: A thermosonic ribbon bonding process uses a combination of a relatively low temperature and a high frequency to bond a ribbon conductor to conductive bonding sites of a system level support structure, such as a space/airborne antenna, containing circuit components whose characteristics might otherwise be degraded at an elevated temperature customarily used in device-level thermosonic bonding processes. By relatively low temperature is meant a temperature no greater than the minimum temperature that would potentially cause a modification of the circuit parameters of at least one of the system's components. Such a minimum temperature may lie in a range on the order of 25-85.degree. C., while the ultrasonic bonding frequency preferably lies in a range of from 122 KHz to 140 KHz. For gold ribbon to gold pad bonds, this high frequency range achieves the requisite atomic diffusion bonding energy, without causing fracturing or destruction of the gold ribbon or its interface with the gold pad.

Abstract: In a method for fastening electronic components on a substrate by means of pressure sintering, which includes providing a layer of sinterable metal powder on a surface of one component, assembling the components engaging the layer and then, while exerting a pressure on the components, applying heat to sinter the layer of material, an improvement comprises forming the layer of sinterable metal powder by vaporizing a metal and condensing the metal as a nanocrystalline metal powder on the surface. Preferably, the metal powder is silver and is applied in a precipitation chamber.

Abstract: An apparatus and method of supporting lead fingers during a wire bonding process and of preventing the bonding apparatus and clamping assembly from applying force against the die are available. The present invention includes the use of a movable arm with a portion that is positionable under a portion of the lead fingers of a lead frame during the wire bonding process to provide increased stability of the lead fingers and prevent the bonding apparatus and clamping assembly from applying force against the die. The present invention also provides for the transfer of heat from the heat block directly to the lead fingers during the wire bonding process. The present invention includes the use of a clamp for stabilizing lead fingers during the wire bonding process.

Abstract: A soldering/desoldering apparatus has a handpiece with a handgrip portion from which a hot air tube extends, a vacuum pickup tube which extends through the handgrip portion and hot air tube, one end of which has a suction cup mounted thereon and an opposite end of which is connected to a flexible vacuum line. Furthermore, an adjustment knob for axially shifting the vacuum pickup tube is provided on the handgrip portion and the vacuum pickup tube is resiliently displaceably supported relative to a displacement mechanism formed by a slide rod fixed to an inner wall of the handgrip portion and a rack member slidably disposed on the slide rod and geared to the adjustment knob. The pickup tube is fixed to a slide bracket which is slidably disposed on the slide rod between the ends of the rack member and between a pair of coil springs which act to position the slide bracket in a neutral position between the ends of the rack member. Additionally, nozzles having a fixed vacuum pickup extension can be used.

Abstract: A method and apparatus is available for receiving surgical needle stock from a needle fabrication line and welding the surgical needle stock to a metal tape. The apparatus includes a welding station where the needle stock is welded to the tape. A tape indexing unit is arranged to move the metal tape through the welding station. A preload chuck is arranged to receive the surgical needle stock from the needle fabrication line and a gripper assembly is arranged to receive the surgical needle stock from the preload chuck and transfer the surgical needle stock from the preload chuck to the welding station.

Abstract: This invention relates to the discovery of organometallic ceramic precursor binders used to fabricate shaped bodies by different techniques. Exemplary shape making techniques which utilize hardenable, liquid, organometallic, ceramic precursor binders include the fabrication of negatives of parts to be made (e.g., sand molds and sand cores for metalcasting, etc.), as well as utilizing ceramic precursor binders to make shapes directly (e.g., brake shoes, brake pads, clutch parts, grinding wheels, polymer concrete, refractory patches and liners, etc.). In a preferred embodiment, this invention relates to thermosettable, liquid ceramic precursors which provide suitable-strength sand molds sand cores at very low binder levels and which, upon exposure to molten metalcasting exhibit low emissions toxicity as a result of their high char yields of ceramic upon exposure to heat.

Abstract: In a capillary used in a wire bonding apparatus that has a wire threading hole through which a bonding wire of 10 to 30 .mu.m diameter passes and is provided with two chamfers, i.e., lower and upper chamfers, near the tip end of the wire threading hole, the upper chamfer has a chamfer angle of 3 to 19 degrees and a depth of 20 to 50 microns.

Abstract: An ultrasonic vibration bonding chip mounter includes a chip carrying unit arranged above a chip supply unit, a prealignment unit and a mounting unit which are arranged in a row and having a movable table which can move back and forth in a direction parallel to a direction where these units are arranged, a pick-up unit, attached to the movable table, for transferring a chip from the chip supply unit to the prealignment unit, and an ultrasonic vibration bonding unit, attached to the movable table, for transferring the chip from the prealignment unit to a mounting unit so that the chips are transferred from the chip supply unit to the prealignment unit and further to the mounting unit by the reciprocation of the movable table one by one.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a hollow spindle, especially for the pivotal mounting of valve-actuating levers to control exhaust-and-intake valves of an internal combustion engine. The spindle has an outer tube, in the interior of which a shaped tubular body is fixed in order to form at least two liquid-carrying chambers. To form a chamber, the tubular body is provided with a cutout extending in the longitudinal direction. The tubular body is a shaped inner tube that, seen in cross-section, has an inwardly-curved region that makes a rounded and stepless transition to the circular region, and of the tubular body. At least the circular region is joined by virtue of its material to the outer tube.

Abstract: A method for soldering components to opposite sides of a receptive element includes the steps of applying a solder formulation to both sides of the receptive element (201) and placing components on a first side of the receptive element (204). The solder formulation is hardened on the first side of the receptive element (205). Components are placed on a second side of the receptive element and the solder formulation on the second side of the receptive element is hardened. The components are fixed to the receptive element by performing a single reflow operation (208).

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of soldering components on a carrier foil whereby hot gas is conducted onto the lower side of the carrier foil. Special soldering methods are necessary especially in SMD technology, whereby components can be soldered in large numbers on a carrier foil in a non-destructive manner both for the component itself and for the carrier foil. According to the invention, the hot gas is aimed at a soldering spot through a nozzle, heating this spot until solder heated by the hot gas flow melts on the surface of the carrier foil.

Abstract: Methods and apparatuses to perform soldering while the chip is held by a head under melted solder condition are disclosed. Solder bumps 3 are formed on the chip 1, and they are opposite to terminals 11 on a mounting board 10. Furthermore, a heating block 21 is located at the back of the chip, and it raises the temperature of the solder bumps 3 on the chip 1 to a melting point by heating the chip back by conduction. Preferably, another heating block 22 is located at the back of the mounting board 10. Soldering is performed by bringing the solder bumps 3 into contact with the terminals 11 while the solder is melted.

Abstract: In order to produce separate measured portions (1") of liquid solder, solid solder (1) in the form of wire or rod is guided through the longitudinal bore of a guide tube (20). A zone including the end (22) of the tube (20) is heated above the solder's melting temperature, in order to liquefy the solder. By contrast, an adjacent zone of the guide tube is cooled, whereby a positionally stable temperature transition is maintained in the tube (20). Thereby the amount of molten solder available above a narrowed outlet (62) is controlled. A drive mechanism (3) advances the solder (1) step by step so that the solid solder acts as a piston to eject portions of liquid solder through the aforesaid outlet (62). A suitable apparatus (5) for applying portions of solder to a substrate (4) can be raised and lowered (a). At its base it has a moulding die (6) connected to the outlet (62) that can be set down upon the substrate and has a moulding cavity open on its underside.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for continuously finishing hot-rolling steel strips include partially joining a rear end of a preceding steel strip and a leading end of a succeeding steel strip after the strips have passed through a rough hot-rolling step. The joint is flattened. The joint is rolled with a first stand of a tandem rolling mill. The mill is provided with a plurality of stands that includes a pair of work rolls and backup rolls and/or intermediate rolls, so that a compression stress acts at the unjointed section of the strips in the longitudinal direction of the joint while tracking the joint. Shape-control-rolling is performed on the joint with a second and succeeding stands so that a section of the steel strip other than the joint is subjected to the shape-control-rolling at all the stands.

Abstract: A grooved anode plate 40 for use in a field emission flat panel display device comprises a transparent planar substrate 42 having a plurality of electrically conductive, parallel stripes 46 comprising the anode electrode of the device, which are covered by phosphors 48.sub.R, 48.sub.G and 48.sub.B. In one embodiment, grooves 50, having generally straight sidewalls, are formed in the upper surface of planar substrate 42 at the interstices of conductors 46. In a second embodiment, grooves 50', which provide a substantial undercutting of the material of substrate 42' adjacent the edges of conductors 46', are formed in the upper surface of planar substrate 42' at the interstices of conductors 46'. A substantially opaque, electrically insulating material 52 is affixed to substrate 42 in the grooves 50 formed between conductors 46, acting as a barrier to the passage of ambient light into and out of the device.

Abstract: A micropositioner affording the ability to precisely move the tip of an ultrasonic bonding tool relative to a miniature workpiece such as a microcircuit includes a pantograph-like input manipulator mechanism coupled by a single ball joint coupling to a follower mechanism which supports an ultrasonic transducer support housing from which a transducer and bonding tool attached thereto protrudes. In the preferred embodiment, the input manipulator includes a longitudinally outwardly protruding control arm having a control knob at the outer longitudinal end thereof, for grasping between the thumb and fingers of a human operator. The control arm is coupled to the outer lateral end of a four-bar parallelogram linkage comprising part of a pantograph mechanism, while the inner lateral end of the pantograph mechanism is pivotably connected through vertically and horizontally disposed pivot support bearings to a support structure.

Abstract: The invention provides methods of manufacturing stainless steel tubing, pipe and shafts by utilizing air hardenable stainless steel. Such pipe, tubing and shafts have the important characteristics of low weight, shaft flex, torque, bend point and strength and have many uses. The shafts include a plurality of air hardenable metal segments of selected length, thickness and shape that are assembled into a shaft. This assembly is subsequently contacted with a brazing material and then placed into a controlled, non-oxidative atmosphere furnace of a sufficient temperature such that the assembly is simultaneously brazed and hardened. The tubing can include having a brazed lock seam which provides strength. The present invention further provides reinforcing members that are also brazed within the shaft, tubing or pipe while the outer piece is hardened.