Electric heating – Metal heating – By arc
Reexamination Certificate
2002-01-25
2003-12-09
Heinrich, Samuel M. (Department: 1725)
Electric heating
Metal heating
By arc
C219S121820
Reexamination Certificate
active
06660961
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a solder ball bounding (SBB) machine and method used in a magnetic head assembly process of HGA production for hard disk drives.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
U.S. Pat. No. 5,828,031 entitled “Head Transducer to Suspension Lead Termination by Solder Ball Place/Reflow” issued to Surya Pattanaik on Oct. 27, 1998 discloses a method for forming electrical solder connection between a thin film magnetic head transducer and the conductors in an integrated suspension after the head has been mechanically attached to a suspension. A solder ball is placed between the head and conductor termination pads. A focused laser beam is used to produce solder reflow. The resulting solder connection has a very fine grain structure and includes a pair of extremely thin layers of intermedallic compounds in the regions where the solder connection abuts the head and conductor termination pads.
FIG. 1
shows a conventional SBB (solder ball bounding) bond head. As shown in
FIG. 1
, the SBB bond head has a capillary
2
on its laser head
1
through which the laser beam and the solder ball
3
get to the bump
4
desired. When the laser is turned on, the solder ball
3
will be melt on the bump and the welding finished.
FIG. 2
shows a top view of a head area of an HGA (head gimbal assembly). As shown in
FIG. 2
, the HGA comprises a slider
24
and a suspension
21
which has a flexure
22
and a flex cable
26
thereon. There are some traces
23
on the flex cable
26
as a signal channel. And there are some bump pads
27
on the slider
24
. Usually the slider
24
is bounded on a tongue area
28
of the flexure
22
, and is well alignment to a pad
25
of the trace
23
of the flex cable
26
.
To derive a signal from the slider
24
, it is needed to connect the bump pad
27
of the slider
24
to the bump pad
25
of the trace
23
by an SBB or other bonding method.
A conventional bonding method for an HGA comprises steps as follows:
1. mounting a flex cable
26
on a suspension
21
;
2. mounting a slider
24
on the suspension
21
;
3. loading the suspension
21
to a fixture
33
in
FIG. 3
;
4. connecting a pad
25
of a trace
23
with a slider pad
27
on the suspension
21
by an SBB or GBB (gold ball bonding) bonding method; and
5. taking the HGA from the fixture
33
, then loading another suspension to the fixture
33
, repeating steps 1-4 for bonding a next HGA.
There are three problems in a conventional bonding process by means of a conventional bonding machine as shown in FIG.
3
:
1. In order to fix a suspension
21
and a slider
24
in the bonding process, two clamps
31
and
32
as well as a fixture
33
are provided. Consequently, it will be possible to cause damage to the suspension
21
.
2. Since the SBB is a kind of heating process by laser power, it is likely to produce a internal stress in the flexure made of metal when bonding a slider to a flexure, which will cause a suspension static pitch/roll change.
3. Since bonding is made at an HGA level, only one HGA can be bonded every time. Therefore, the mass production is difficult, and the efficiency of production is very low.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to overcome the above-mentioned drawbacks, it is necessary to change the bonding process from an HGA level to a flex cable level and to add a flex cable sheet convey system to a bonding machine.
Therefore, one object of the present invention is to provide an SBB machine used in a magnetic head assembly process of HGA production.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an SBB method by means of the machine.
In one aspect of the present invention, an SBB machine comprises a laser head with a focus system, a monitor with a camera positioning system and a flex cable sheet station with a conveyer system. The laser head can be controlled from the monitor to move vertically and horizontally by the camera positioning system, and the conveyer belt of the transport system can be controlled to move step by step.
In another aspect of the present invention, A SBB bonding method for an HGA by means of the SBB machine according to the present invention comprises steps:
a) making a flex cable trace pattern on a flex cable sheet by etching or the like;
b) bonding sliders the number of which corresponds to that of the flex cables on the flex cable sheet by SBB or the like, with precise alignment to trace pads one by one;
c) cutting the flex cable provided with the sliders from the flex cable sheet;
d) mounting the flex cable provided with the sliders onto a suspension by epoxy or the like, and finishing an HGA.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5828031 (1998-10-01), Pattanaik
patent: 6097087 (2000-08-01), Farnworth et al.
patent: 6380511 (2002-04-01), Santhanam
Heinrich Samuel M.
Kenyon & Kenyon
Sae Magnetics (H.K.) Ltd.
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