Apparatus for fabricating semiconductor devices

Claim 1

IN APPARATUS FOR AUTOMATICALLY FABRICATING HERMETIC STEMS OF THE TYPE HAVING A METALLIC HOUSING BOUNDING A GLASS CORE TRAVERSED BY AT LEAST ONE LEAD-IN WIRE, THE COMBINATION COMPRISING: INDEXING FEED MECHANISM INCLUDING TRANSLATABLE MEANS MOUNTING A PLURALITY OF DIES EACH APERTURED TO RECEIVE A STEM HOUSING AND LEADS, AND SAID MECHANISM BEING ADAPTED TO CARRY DIE-MOUNTED HOUSINGS SEQUENTIALLY INTO SUCCESSIVE REGISTRATION WITH A PROGRESSION OF MACHINE ELEMENTS SYNCHRONIZED FOR COORDINATE ACTION, SAID MACHINE ELEMENTS COMPRISING: MEANS FOR DEPOSITING HOUSINGS WITHIN SAID DIES; WIRE-FEED MEANS FOR DISPOSING A PREDETERMINED LENGTH OF WIRE WITHIN THE DIE-MOUNTED HOUSINGS; MEANS FOR GRAVITATIONALLY SUPPLYING A PREDETERMINED CHARGE OF POWDERED GLASS TO THE HOUSING CAVITIES; MEANS FOR COMPACTING SAID CHARGE INTO AN INTEGRATED MASS CAPABLE OF SELF-MAINTAINING ITS COMPACTED CONFIGURATION WITHIN SAID HOUSINGS; STEM-TRANSPORT MEANS COMPRISING A CHAIN OF FIRING FIXTURES CONSTRUCTED TO RECEIVE COLD-PRESSED STEM ASSEMBLIES; TRANSFER MEANS FOR TRANSLATING THE COLDPRESSED STEM ASSEMBLIES FROM SAID FEED MECHANISM TO SAID FIRING FIXTURES; MEANS FOR COORDINATING THE MOVEMENTS OF SAID TRANSFER MEANS AND INDEXING FEED MECHANISM; AN OVEN FOR HEATING THE COLD-PRESSED STEM ASSEMBLIES TO A TEMPERATURE SUFFICIENT TO FUSE COMPONENT PARTS OF SUCH AN ASSEMBLY INTO A HERMETICALLY INTEGRATED UNIT; AND STEMTRANSPORT DRIVE MEANS ADAPTED TO PROVIDE CONTINUOUS UNINTERRUPTED MOVEMENT OF CERTAIN OF SAID FIXTURES THROUGH SAID OVEN WHILE CONCURRENTLY PROVIDING FOR INTERMITTENT MOVEMENT OF OTHERS OF SAID FIXTURES TO ACCOMODATE INTERMITTENT TRANSFER OF SAID COLD-PRESSED STEM ASSEMBLIES, BY SAID TRANSFER MEANS, TO SAID FIXTURES.