A method of operating an ultrasonic bonding machine is provided. The method includes the steps of: (a) imaging at least one of (i) a semiconductor element supported by a substrate, and (ii) a clamping structure adapted for securing the substrate during a bonding operation; and (b) determining if a relative position of the semiconductor element and the clamping structure is acceptable using predetermined criteria and information from step (a).

Provided is an electric cable with terminal and a manufacture method thereof to suppress the shedding of wire strands from a core wire. An electric cable with terminal in which an end of an electric cable is connected to a terminal, the electric cable includes a core wire that is a bundle of a plurality of wire strands. The terminal includes a connection portion in which the core wire is exposed at the end of the electric cable. The core wire is placed on the connection portion including a welded portion that is to be ultrasonic welded to the connection portion. The welded portion includes a high compression portion in which the core wire is compressed, and a low compression portion in which a position that is closer than the high compression portion to the end of the core wire is compressed at a compression lower than that of the high compression portion.

Provided is a wire setting apparatus of a tabbing apparatus. A wire setting apparatus of a tabbing apparatus according to the present invention includes: a conveyer; a wire placement platform installed adjacent to the conveyer such that a portion of a wire placed on the conveyor lies on the wire placement platform; and a placement gripper device configured to grip the wire and to place the wire on the wire placement platform.

An ultrasonic bonding method of a conductor of an electric wire includes ultrasonically bonding strands forming a conductor of at least one electric wire using an anvil and horns. A first vibration mode of at least one of the horns is different from a second vibration mode of the other horns.

A method for manufacturing a terminal-equipped electric wire includes forming, in an electric wire, a bonded portion in which strands of a conductor exposed due to absence of a sheath are bonded to each other. A terminal including a wire barrel portion is fixed to the electric wire such that the wire barrel portion covers at least a part of the bonded portion. A sectional shape of the bonded portion before the fixing of the terminal is formed in such a shape that a variable range of a value of a distance between a geometric center of a cross section of the bonded portion and the wire barrel portion falls within a range of 0.71 to 1.29 when rotating the bonded portion by an arbitrary angle while engaging the bonded portion with the wire barrel portion within the wire barrel portion.

A terminal-equipped electric wire has an electric wire including a bonded portion formed at a part of a conductor exposed due to absence of a sheath at a part of the electric wire in a longitudinal direction and in which strands of the conductor are bonded to each other; and a terminal including a wire barrel portion, the wire barrel portion covering at least a part of the bonded portion. The bonded portion includes a load release portion configured to reduce stress applied to the conductor.

One aspect relates to a feedthrough system. The feedthrough system includes a feedthrough and a wire. At least a portion of the feedthrough is made of an insulator and at least one area forming an electrically conductive cermet pathway. The cermet pathway may include an electrically conductive metal. The wire may be at least partially connected to the cermet pathway so that the material of the wire forms a joint microstructure with the electrically conductive material in the cermet pathway.

A three-dimensional electronic, biological, chemical, thermal management, or electromechanical apparatus and method thereof. One or more layers of a three-dimensional structure are deposited on a substrate. The three-dimensional structure is configured to include one or more internal cavities using, an extrusion-based additive manufacturing system enhanced with a range of secondary embedding processes. The three-dimensional structure includes one or more structural integrated metal objects spanning the one or more of the internal cavities of the three-dimensional structure for enhanced electromagnetic properties and bonded between two or more other metal objects located at the same layer or different layers of the three-dimensional structure.

A method of removing material from a surface, which includes the steps of providing a base layer, at least one layer attached to the base layer, an intermediate finish surface, and a bonding interface surface. The intermediate finish surface is formed by removing the at least one layer and a portion of the base layer during a material removal process. The bonding interface surface is formed by a polishing process applied to the intermediate finish surface. There is an oxidation layer which is part of the base layer, as well as a mold release layer and a contamination layer, both of which are part of the at least one layer. The material removal process involves laser etching the at least one layer to create the intermediate finish surface, and the polishing process includes applying a second laser etching to the intermediate finish surface, forming the bonding interface surface.

A bonding tool includes a wedge tool that presses a bonding wire against a principal plane of a structure such as an electrode to which the bonding wire is to be bonded. A groove formed in an end portion of a wedge tool body of the wedge tool is inclined along a longitudinal direction of the bonding wire so that a heel side of the groove is closer to the principal plane of the structure than a toe side of the groove. As a result, the wedge tool is inclined at a tilt angle and the bonding wire fits the groove in the end portion of the wedge tool body along the longitudinal direction of the bonding wire. Thus, a corner portion of the wedge tool does not contact the electrode.