Manufacturing · 2023 – 2024Mercury Systems

Multi-Up Wire Bonding Fixture

A spring-retained, multi-up wire bonding fixture for a DoW-qualified microelectronics line.

Role: Mechanical intern
Company: Mercury Systems
Program: DoW-qualified
Tools: SolidWorks

Problem

The line bonded one part at a time, and operators spent most of a shift aligning parts by hand before each run. Every manual setup risked drifting outside qualified tolerances.

What I did

I designed the fixture in SolidWorks around a machined aluminum alignment edge referenced to the platform datum, so parts locate without operator judgment. Springs hold each part down the same way across the carrier. I set the critical dimensions from the bond head tolerance budget, not the housing envelope.

I coordinated machining of the alignment edge, ran first article inspection against the tolerance budget, and released the drawings, FAI notes, and an operator procedure for loading parts.

Result

01No hand alignmentThe datum edge removed operator-to-operator variation in part placement, and run-to-run variation stayed within acceptance.

02More parts per runThe multi-up carrier bonds several parts per run instead of one.

03Qualification keptThe program kept its DoW qualification through the fixture changeover.