Disclosed are wire clamps and wire bonding apparatuses including the same. The wire clamp comprises a clamping lever, a driving lever parallel to the clamping lever and having an upper support, a shaft that penetrates a center of the driving lever to connect to the clamping lever, a spring in the driving lever and on an outer circumferential surface of the shaft, and an upper pivot that protrudes from an inner wall of the upper support to separate the upper support from the clamping lever. The driving lever has a load point and an effort point on opposite sides of the shaft. The effort point is connected in a direction of a straight line to the shaft and the effort point.

Provided is a wire bonding state determination device which determines a bonding state between a pad and a wire after the wire is bonded to the pad. The wire bonding state determination device includes: a waveform detector which makes an incident wave incident to the wire, and detects a transmission waveform of the wire and a reflection waveform from a first bonding surface between the pad and the wire; and a bonding determination unit which determines the bonding state between the pad and the wire based on the transmission waveform and the reflection waveform detected by the waveform detector.

A wire bonding apparatus includes: a first tensioner which forms, nearer a wire supply side than a bonding tool, a first gas flow for applying a tension toward the wire supply side on a wire; a second tensioner which forms, between the first tensioner and a pressing part of the bonding tool, a second gas flow for applying a tension toward the wire supply side on the wire; and a control part which controls the first tensioner and the second tensioner. The control part implements control, in a predetermined period after a first bonding step for bonding the wire to a first bonding point, to turn off at least the second gas flow of the second tensioner among the first tensioner and the second tensioner or to make at least the second gas flow smaller than in the first bonding step.

A wire clamping system for fully automatic wire bonding machine comprises a base, a wire clamping support, a wire clamping assembly, a driving mechanism and an elastic assembly. The wire clamping assembly can move relative to the capillary, so that when the wire clamping system completes the second bond, the metal wire at the end of the capillary may directly extend out of the capillary by the independent movement of the wire clamping assembly and a length thereof can be effectively controlled, in order to form a metal ball in the next first bond. Furthermore, when the wire clamping system completes the second bond, the wire clamping assembly is in a clamping state, which avoids wires flying, even though the second bond is not firmly connected or the machine vibrates.

A method for automatically threading wire in a wire bonding apparatus includes the steps of extending a wire tail of a wire from a wire spool, locating the wire tail in a wire locating device and positioning the wire tail at a straightening location of the wire locating device. The wire tail is straightened at the straightening location with a wire manipulating device and then conveyed to a threading location. With a wire threading device, the straightened wire tail is received at the threading location and is threaded through a capillary of the wire bonding apparatus.

A wire bonding method, comprising the steps of: extending a length of bonding wire from a capillary to form a wire tail; deforming a point on the wire tail to form a weakened portion between the wire tail and a remainder of the bonding wire retained within the capillary; and retracting at least a portion of the wire tail including the weakened portion into the capillary prior to bonding the wire tail to at least one of a bonding pad and a substrate.

A method for automatically threading wire in a wire bonding apparatus includes the steps of extending a wire tail of a wire from a wire spool, locating the wire tail in a wire locating device and positioning the wire tail at a straightening location of the wire locating device. The wire tail is straightened at the straightening location with a wire manipulating device and then conveyed to a threading location. With a wire threading device, the straightened wire tail is received at the threading location and is threaded through a capillary of the wire bonding apparatus.

A wire clamping system for fully automatic wire bonding machine comprises a base, a wire clamping support, a wire clamping assembly, a driving mechanism and an elastic assembly. The wire clamping assembly can move relative to the capillary, so that when the wire clamping system completes the second bond, the metal wire at the end of the capillary may directly extend out of the capillary by the independent movement of the wire clamping assembly and a length thereof can be effectively controlled, in order to form a metal ball in the next first bond. Furthermore, when the wire clamping system completes the second bond, the wire clamping assembly is in a clamping state, which avoids wires flying, even though the second bond is not firmly connected or the machine vibrates.

A wire bonding method, comprising the steps of: extending a length of bonding wire from a capillary to form a wire tail; deforming a point on the wire tail to form a weakened portion between the wire tail and a remainder of the bonding wire retained within the capillary; and retracting at least a portion of the wire tail including the weakened portion into the capillary prior to bonding the wire tail to at least one of a bonding pad and a substrate.

A wire bonding apparatus includes: a first tensioner which forms, nearer a wire supply side than a bonding tool, a first gas flow for applying a tension toward the wire supply side on a wire; a second tensioner which forms, between the first tensioner and a pressing part of the bonding tool, a second gas flow for applying a tension toward the wire supply side on the wire; and a control part which controls the first tensioner and the second tensioner. The control part implements control, in a predetermined period after a first bonding step for bonding the wire to a first bonding point, to turn off at least the second gas flow of the second tensioner among the first tensioner and the second tensioner or to make at least the second gas flow smaller than in the first bonding step.