US-20260129764-A1 - REMOVAL APPARATUS AND METHOD USING THE SAME

US20260129764A1US 20260129764 A1US20260129764 A1US 20260129764A1US-20260129764-A1

Abstract

A removal apparatus is provided. The removal apparatus includes a support member, a substance-removing member, and/or a spring member. The substance-removing member includes a handle portion, a first shaft portion, and a second shaft portion. The first shaft portion comprises a first end connecting to the handle portion, and a second end connecting to the second shaft portion. The substance-removing member further includes a substance-removing assembly secured (or removably attached) to the second shaft portion. A diameter of the spring member is greater than a diameter of the second shaft portion and is less than a diameter of the first shaft portion. The substance-removing assembly includes a substance-removing head for removing substance(s). For example, the substance-removing head can be applied to remove a portion of a solder mask and/or a portion of a conductive element (e.g., signal trace or plated via) covered by the solder mask.

Inventors

Cheng Hong LAI

Assignees

Aivres Systems Inc.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20251230

Claims (20)

1 . A removal apparatus, comprising: a support member; and a substance-removing member comprising a substance-removing head, wherein a bottom portion of the support member comprises a through-hole that allows the substance-removing head to pass through.
2 . The removal apparatus of claim 1 , wherein: the substance-removing member comprises a substance-removing assembly, and the substance-removing assembly comprises a body portion and the substance-removing head removably attached to the body portion.
3 . The removal apparatus of claim 2 , wherein a diameter of the substance-removing head is approximately 2-10 mils.
4 . The removal apparatus of claim 2 , wherein: the substance-removing member further comprises a first shaft portion and a second shaft portion, a first end of the second shaft portion is connected to the body portion of the substance-removing assembly, and a second end of the second shaft portion that is opposite to the first end is connected to the first shaft portion.
5 . The removal apparatus of claim 4 , wherein: the substance-removing member further comprises an upper handle fixed to the first shaft portion.
6 . The removal apparatus of claim 4 , wherein: a diameter of the first shaft portion is greater than a diameter of the second shaft portion.
7 . The removal apparatus of claim 4 , further comprising a spring member, wherein: a diameter of the spring member is greater than a diameter of the second shaft portion, and the diameter of the spring member is less than a diameter of the first shaft portion.
8 . The removal apparatus of claim 2 , further comprising: an additional substance-removing head for removably attachment to the body portion of the substance-removing assembly, wherein a diameter of the additional substance-removing head is different from a diameter of the substance-removing head.
9 . The removal apparatus of claim 8 , wherein: a dimension of the additional substance-removing head is determined based on an inner diameter and an outer diameter of a via of a printed circuit board (PCB).
10 . The removal apparatus of claim 2 , wherein: a dimension of the substance-removing head is determined based on a width of a conductive trace of a printed circuit board (PCB).
11 . The removal apparatus of claim 1 , wherein: the support member comprises a support body and a plurality of support legs fixedly attached to the support body.
12 . The removal apparatus of claim 11 , wherein a base of a support leg from the plurality of support legs comprises a flat bottom surface.
13 . The removal apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the support body of the support member is hollow and comprises an opening for insertion of the substance-removing member.
14 . The removal apparatus of claim 13 , wherein a diameter of the opening of the support member is greater than a diameter of a first shaft portion of the substance-removing member.
15 . The removal apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the support member is made of a rigid material.
16 . A system, comprising: a removal apparatus; and a driving unit to drive the removal apparatus, wherein the removal apparatus comprises: a spring member, a support member to hold the spring member, and a substance-removing member comprising a substance-removing head, wherein a bottom portion of the support member comprises a through-hole that allows the substance-removing head to pass through.
17 . A method, comprising: determining a to-be-exposed area of a conductive element of a printed circuit board (PCB), the to-be-exposed area of the conductive element being covered by a protective layer of the PCB; placing a removal apparatus at a first location with respect to the to-be-exposed area of the conductive element; contacting a substance-removing head of the removal apparatus with a to-be-removed portion of the protective layer that covers the to-be-exposed area of the conductive element; and rotating the substance-removing head of the removal apparatus so that the to-be-removed portion of the protective layer is removed to expose the to-be-exposed area of the conductive element.
18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the conductive element is a conductive trace, and the method further comprises: further rotating the substance-removing head of the removal apparatus, thereby cutting the conductive trace.
19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein further rotating the substance-removing head of the removal apparatus comprises: placing the removal apparatus at a second location different from the first location, contacting the substance-removing head of the removal apparatus with an additional to-be-removed portion of the protective layer; and rotating the substance-removing head of the removal apparatus, thereby removing the additional to-be-removed portion of the protective layer.
20 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising: prior to placing the removal apparatus with respect to the to-be-exposed area of the conductive element: selecting, based on one or more dimensions of the conductive element, the substance-removing head from a plurality of substance-removing heads for the removal apparatus.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates generally to a removal apparatus and method. BACKGROUND A printed circuit board (PCB) is commonly used in electronic products and systems to hold and connect components (e.g., integrated circuits, capacitors, resistors, inductors, etc.) of an electrical circuit. The PCB often includes a substrate and a conductive layer (e.g., copper foil) that is disposed on the substrate and etched to form conductive traces (or patterns) for connecting the components (which are often soldered to the PCB). The PCB often further includes a protective layer (e.g., solder mask) disposed on the conductive layer, to protect the conductive layer. During manufacturing and maintenance of a PCB, conductive trace(s) covered by the protective layer often need to be exposed, cut, or replaced, in order to test or modify the electrical circuit. A precision knife, utility knife, or scraper is often used to perform such tasks. However, applying these tools for PCB substance removal is difficult. When accessing or modifying a trace using one of the existing tools, a person can easily damage adjacent trace(s) or the structure of the PCB, and such damage to the PCB is typically irreversible. SUMMARY Techniques are described herein for precise substance removal from a PCB (or any other applicable board or structures), to test, modify, or cut one or more elements (e.g., conductive elements such as a conductive trace or a plated via) of the PCB. According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a removal apparatus is provided. The removal apparatus includes a support member, and a substance-removing member comprising a substance-removing head. In some embodiments, a bottom portion of the support member includes a through-hole that allows the substance-removing head to pass through. In some embodiments, the substance-removing member includes a substance-removing assembly, and the substance-removing assembly includes a body portion and the substance-removing head, where the substance-removing head is removably attached to the body portion. In some embodiments, a diameter of the substance-removing head is approximately 2-10 mils. The diameter or other dimensions of the substance-removing head can be configured or determined based on dimensions of the one or more elements (of the PCB) that are to be cut, modified, or tested, such that precise substance removal is realized. In some embodiments, the substance-removing member further includes a first shaft portion and a second shaft portion, where a first end of the second shaft portion is connected to the body portion of the substance-removing assembly, and a second end of the second shaft portion that is opposite to the first end is connected to the first shaft portion. In some embodiments, a diameter of the first shaft portion is greater than a diameter of the second shaft portion. In some embodiments, the substance-removing member further comprises an upper handle fixed to the first shaft portion. One or more forces can be applied to the upper handle to control the substance-removing head of the removal apparatus, so as to perform substance removal. In some embodiments, the removal apparatus further comprises a spring member, where a diameter of the spring member is greater than a diameter of the second shaft portion, and the diameter of the spring member is less than a diameter of the first shaft portion. In some embodiments, the removal apparatus further includes an additional substance-removing head for removably attachment to the body portion of the substance-removing assembly, where a diameter (or other dimension) of the additional substance-removing head is different from a diameter (or other dimension) of the substance-removing head. This allows the removal apparatus to be applied to remove substance(s) from different components of the PCB (or other applicable board or structure). In some embodiments, a dimension of the additional substance-removing head is determined based on an inner diameter and an outer diameter of a via (e.g., a plated via) of the PCB. In some embodiments, a dimension of the substance-removing head is determined based on a width of a conductive trace of the PCB. In some embodiments, the support member includes a support body and a plurality of support legs fixedly attached to the support body. In some embodiments, a base of a support leg from the plurality of support legs comprises a flat bottom surface. In some embodiments, the support body of the support member is hollow and comprises an opening for insertion of the substance-removing member. In some embodiments, a diameter of the opening of the support member is greater than a diameter of a first shaft portion of the substance-removing member. In some embodiments, the support member is made of a rigid material. According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a system is provided. The system includes: a removal apparatus; and a driving unit to drive the removal appara