Patent ID: 7855568

Claim:
A probe apparatus comprising a movable mounting table on which an object to be tested is mounted, a probe card arranged above the mounting table and having a plurality of probes to be brought into contact with electrodes of the object, a supporting member to horizontally support the probe card, and a control unit for controlling various components including the mounting table, the probe apparatus being adapted to implement electric characteristic test of the object by overdriving the mounting table by a predetermined distance to allow the object to be brought into contact with the probes with a predetermined load, wherein the mounting table includes a mounting table main body and a chuck top provided on the mounting table main body, the chuck top being separable from the mounting table main body, wherein the chuck top is provided with a mount on which the object is mounted and a plurality of cylinder mechanisms surrounding the mount, and the supporting member is provided with a connecting mechanism to releasably connect the supporting member and the cylinder mechanisms to each other, and wherein the control unit operates the cylinder mechanisms and the connecting mechanism to connect the supporting member and the cylinder mechanisms to each other when the object comes into contact with the probes and thereafter, further operates the cylinder mechanisms to move the chuck top upward from the mounting table main body by the predetermined distance so as to achieve electrical contact between the electrodes of the object and the probes with the predetermined load.