To satisfactorily clean probe styluses; to clean them in real time; to improve inspection reliability and inspection quality; and to reduce inspection costs.

While semiconductor chips are being repeatedly inspected, air from an air feed part 15 is fed inward from the periphery of a probe stylus 14 on a probe card 13 to disperse dust such as shavings adhering to each probe stylus 14 in inward directions of the location at which the probe stylus 14 is arranged. Dust dispersed in inward directions of the location at which the probe stylus 14 is arranged is recovered to the outside of the apparatus by drawing the duct by suction by a vacuum part 16 arranged at a center part of the probe card 13.