Claims
- 1. Apparatus for supporting at least one lead frame element for a wire bonding process comprising:at least one support for positioning below said at least one lead frame element for said wire bonding process, a surface of said at least one support for contacting a bearing surface and for moving on a portion thereof, said at least one support including a portion for positioning at a location between lead fingers and a semiconductor device, the portion of said at least one support contacting a lower surface of said lead fingers located above the semiconductor device without providing support therefor; and a heating apparatus for heating said at least one support.
- 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said heating apparatus comprises a heating apparatus for heating said bearing surface.
- 3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said at least one support includes a portion for supporting at least one lead finger.
- 4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said portion comprises a portion for positioning adjacent a semiconductor device.
- 5. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said portion comprises a portion for positioning adjacent a semiconductor device for exerting a force of a bonding apparatus to substantially apply the force against said portion.
- 6. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said portion comprises a portion for substantially preventing an application of force on a die by a bonding apparatus.
- 7. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said portion comprises a portion for resisting a force of substantially 50 to 100 grams.
- 8. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said portion comprises a portion for positioning between said at least one lead finger and a die.
- 9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said at least one support includes a plurality of portions for supporting individual lead fingers.
- 10. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an apparatus for moving said at least one support on said bearing surface.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/358,248, filed Jul. 21, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,227,431, issued May 8, 2001, which is a divisional of application Ser. No. 09/244,702, filed Feb. 4, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,299,057, issued Oct. 9, 2001; which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/709,639, filed Sep. 9, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,890,644, issued Apr. 6, 1999; which is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 08/631,143, filed Jun. 17, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,845, issued Oct. 7, 1997; application Ser. No. 08/597,616, filed Feb. 6, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,647,528, issued Jul. 15, 1997; and application Ser. No. 08/592,058, filed Jan. 26, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,954,842, issued Sep. 21, 1999.
US Referenced Citations (78)
Foreign Referenced Citations (2)
Number |
Date |
Country |
01-283263 |
Oct 1995 |
JP |
7-302806 |
Nov 1995 |
JP |
Non-Patent Literature Citations (2)
Entry |
“Ultrasonic or Thermosonic Wire Bond Site Stabilization Clamp,” Research Disclosure, Jun. 1986, No. 26622. |
Frank P. Incropera et al., “Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer”, Second Edition, pp. 2-12, 1985. |
Continuations (2)
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09/358248 |
Jul 1999 |
US |
Child |
09/840289 |
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US |
Parent |
08/709639 |
Sep 1996 |
US |
Child |
09/244702 |
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US |
Continuation in Parts (3)
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08/631143 |
Jun 1996 |
US |
Child |
08/709639 |
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US |
Parent |
08/597616 |
Feb 1996 |
US |
Child |
08/631143 |
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US |
Parent |
08/592058 |
Jan 1996 |
US |
Child |
08/597616 |
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US |