Patent Document

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This application incorporates by reference Taiwan patent application Serial No. 89211178, Filed on Jun. 29, 2000. 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates in general to an adapter for a computer component of a motherboard test machine, and more particularly to a CPU adapter of the motherboard test machine. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     The Computer has become widely used in modern life. The demand for computers is increasing nowadays due to their diversity and various applications. The objective is to provide users with high quality products. Hence, quality control and tests for products play important roles in mass production. 
     Most manufacturers use test machines to test their newly produced components or devices. Take the motherboard for example. The motherboard is first placed on the test machine and linked to the computer components, such as peripheral equipment, apparatus, an interface card and so forth. Then the test machine starts up and detects the motherboard circuitry. The period of the testing directly influences the time for product production. Analyzing the forgoing test procedures, it takes a lot of time to insert and remove the peripheral equipment, apparatus, interface card, and so forth. Those steps, as described above, are carried through by manpower. It wastes time to assemble the test machine whenever preparing to test a motherboard. It might cause the connecting pins to become crooked and even snapped due to the negligence and frequent insertion and removal of the computer components. Therefore, using probes to connect the computer components can reduce the manpower, improve the testing efficiency and lower the component consumption rate. 
     Conventionally, a test machine includes a function test box, a carrier and a shingle. A probe load board upon the function test box has a number of probes on its surface. The carrier, which is disposed above the function test box and has a number of guide holes, is capable of carrying a motherboard to be tested. The locations of the guide holes, the probes, and pins on the bottom of the motherboard to be tested are interrelated. While the carrier moves downward, the probes are inserted into the guide holes exactly and connect to the pins of the motherboard to be tested. The shingle is disposed above the carrier and has a number of presser bar members or press sticks on its bottom surface wherein the press sticks are capable of fixing the motherboard to be tested on the carrier. Before testing, the computer components, such as the peripheral equipment, apparatus, and interface card, are assembled in the function test box beforehand. The function test box then couples the pins of those components to the probes on the probe load board. 
     In the beginning of the testing, the motherboard to be tested is placed on the carrier, and the shingle and the carrier are moved downward. The probes then move into the guide holes of the carrier exactly and are coupled to the pins on the bottom surface of the motherboard to be tested. Thereafter, the test machine proceeds to test electronically. After finishing the test, the shingle and the carrier are uplifted and another motherboard to be tested is substituted in the next test. It improves the speed of testing by utilizing the probes as compared to working by human labor to insert and remove the computer components. 
     However, utilizing the probes to connect the motherboard to be tested and the apparatus is suitable for low-frequency apparatus, such as the disk drive, keyboard, mouse and so on. If the computer component is high frequency, such as the Central Processing Unit (CPU), graphic card, Random Access Memory (RAM), it might cause two problems, which are as follows: 
     First, the high-frequency signals are prone to diminish due to the impedance of the probes. 
     Second, the high-frequency signals are prone to cause timing disorders due to improper matching with the impedance of the probes. 
     Therefore, the CPU (or other high-frequency apparatus) still has to be inserted and removed by manpower. It is not only time-consuming but also damaging to the pins of the CPU (or other high-frequency apparatus) and thus increases the cost of manufacture. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a CPU adapter for a motherboard test machine. The CPU is plugged in a socket of the device. A connection board of the device is coupled to the pins of the Printed Circuit Board (PCB) to be tested. It can prevent the signals of the CPU from diminishing by means of the circuit design of the connection board and keep the timing regular. Thus, it can save time that would otherwise be needed to insert and remove the apparatus by manpower, lower the hazard of damaging the computer component and decrease the demand for test tools, such as the CPU. 
     The invention achieves the above-identified objects by providing a CPU adapter installed in a test machine for a motherboard to be tested. The CPU adapter includes a connection board and a number of probes wherein the connection board is combined with a CPU and capable of widening the clock signal of the CPU by a widening clock circuit. The probes, disposed on and coupled to the connection board, are capable of being coupled to the pins of the motherboard to be tested. The CPU adapter further includes a number of probe-receptacles and a mounting board. The probe-receptacles are disposed on and coupled to the connection board, with the probes being inserted therein. The mounting board and the connection board are capable of fixing the probe-receptacles for not slanting. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred but non-limiting embodiments. The description is made with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: 
     FIG. 1 shows a front view of a motherboard test machine; 
     FIG. 2 illustrates a perspective view of a test machine shown in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 illustrates a front view of the structure of a CPU adapter of a motherboard test machine according to a preferred embodiment of this invention shown in FIG. 2; 
     FIG. 4 illustrates a front view of the structure of a CPU adapter of a motherboard test machine according to another preferred embodiment of this invention shown in FIG. 2; 
     FIG. 5 illustrates a front view of a motherboard to be tested disposed in the fixed position for testing shown in FIG.  1 . 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring first to FIG. 1, a front view of a motherboard test machine is illustrated. As shown in FIG. 1, a carrier  107  and a shingle  109 —are disposed over a function test box  101  of the test machine and are movable up and down. The presser bar members or press sticks  111  underneath the shingle  109  can fix the motherboard to be tested  113  while the shingle  109  moves downward to a fixed or held position. The carrier  107  is capable of carrying the motherboard to be tested  113  and has guide holes (not shown in the FIGS.) located opposite to the pins on the bottom surface of the motherboard to be tested  103 . A probe load board  103  on the function test box  101  has probes  105  located opposite to the guide holes on the carrier  107 . While the carrier moves downward, the probes  105  are inserted into the guide holes of the carrier  107  exactly and are coupled to the pins of the motherboard to be tested  113 . Before testing, the computer components, such as the peripheral equipment, apparatus, and an interface card (not shown in the FIGS.), are assembled in the function test box  101  beforehand. The function test box  101  then couples the pins of those components to the probes  105  on the probe load board  103 . 
     Please refer to FIG. 2 for the plug-in location of the CPU. A perspective view of the test machine shown in FIG. 1 is illustrated in FIG.  2 . As shown in FIG. 2, a CPU adapter  200  on the bottom surface of the probe load board  103  is capable of coupling a CPU  205  and the motherboard to be tested  113 . Please also refer to FIG. 3. A front view of the structure of a CPU adapter of a motherboard test machine according to a preferred embodiment of this invention shown in FIG. 2 is illustrated in FIG.  3 . The CPU adapter  200  includes a connection board  201 , a number of probe-receptacles  301  and a number of probes wherein the connection board  201  includes a socket  203  for connecting to the CPU  205 . The probe-receptacles  301  are on the connection board  201  and the probes insert within them. The probes  303  are capable of connecting to the pins of the bottom surface of the motherboard to be tested  113  and are coupled to the probe-receptacles  301  and the connection board  201 . The CPU adapter  200  further includes a mounting board  305  for fixing the probe-receptacles wherein the probe-receptacles  301  can pierce though the mounting board  305 . By this way, the probes  303  can be coupled to the pins of the motherboard to be tested  113  precisely. 
     Since the CPU  205  is coupled to the pins of the motherboard to be tested  113 , it might cause the signals to diminish and the timing to become disordered, and make the system malfunction. Thus, the circuit design on the connection board  201  is used for improving the above-mentioned defects. The connection board  201  further includes an electrolytic capacitor  207  and a clock widen circuit  209 . The electrolytic capacitor is provided for enhancing the signals of the CPU  205 . And the connection board  201  widens the clock signal of the CPU  205  by using the clock widen circuit. Hence, the signals of the CPU  205  can keep the signals and timing regular. 
     Moreover, considering that the CPU adapter in FIG. 3 occupies more space than the CPU adapter in FIG. 4. A front view of the structure of a CPU adapter of a motherboard test machine according to another preferred embodiment of this invention shown in FIG. 2 is illustrated in FIG.  4 . The CPU adapter  200  includes a connecting board  201 , a number of probe-receptacles  401 , a number of probes, a socket  203 , and a mounting board  405 . The circuit design and the connecting correlation thereof are as mentioned above except that the location of the probes  403  is directly opposite to that of the pins of the CPU  205  for the sake of saving the space. In order to prevent the probe-receptacles  401  from conflicting with the pins of CPU  205 , the CPU adapter  200  further includes a connection board  407  and a number of probes  409 . The connection board  407  for connecting with the probe-receptacles  401  is coupled to the connection board  201  by the probes. The location of the probes  409  should avoid conflict with the pins of the socket  203 . 
     Referring to FIG. 5, a front view of a motherboard to be tested disposed in the fixed position for testing shown in FIG. 1 is illustrated. After the motherboard to be tested  113  is placed in position, the shingle  109  and carrier  107  move downward and arrive the fixed position for testing. The probes  105  of the CPU adapter  200  move into the guide holes of the carrier  107  exactly and connect to the corresponding pins on the bottom surface of the motherboard to be tested  113 . Thereafter, the test machine proceeds to test the circuitry. After finishing the test, the shingle  109  and the carrier  107  are uplifted and another motherboard to be tested is substituted in the next test. 
     In accordance with the above-mentioned preferred embodiment of the invention, the adapter may be used not only for a CPU but also for any other high-frequency components, such as graphic cards, RAM, and so on. 
     The advantages of the CPU adapter of the motherboard test machine according to the disclosed embodiment are as follows: 
     First, it shortens the test time and raises the producing rate: the CPU is plugged in the connection board of the CPU adapter in the function test box beforehand. Instead of insertion and removal of the CPU by manpower, the PCB to be tested is put in the function test box and the circuit testing proceeds. 
     Second, it decreases the cost of testing: The connecting pins of the CPU used to get bent and even snap due to the worker negligence and frequent insertion and removal of the computer components. The damage to the component increases the cost of testing. By way of using probes to connect the computer components according to this invention, it can lower the hazard of damaging the computer component and further decrease the component consumption rate and the cost of testing. 
     Third, it decreases the demand for test tools, such as CPUs. It requires one CPU for one test machine instead of plugging one CPU in each motherboard to be tested. Therefore, it decreases the amount of test tools for usage. 
     While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of the preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiment. To the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements and procedures, and the scope of the appended claims therefore should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements and procedures.

Technology Category: 3