Autotestcon sees JTAG diagnostics, RF test, ATEasy release, PXI chassis
-- Test & Measurement World, 9/21/2008 7:14:00 PM
At Autotestcon 2008 (www.autotestcon.com), Intellitech announced its MRDM production-test accelerator, Geotest ATEasy 7.0 debuted, PXI achieved 26.5-GHz performance, Huntron commercialized near-field RF test system, ADLINK PXI chassis entered market, GTS touted news line, and more.
Intellitech (www.intellitech.com) introduced its Mercury Remote Diagnostic Manager (MRDM) for production or burn-in test. The MRDM increases tester throughput by enabling a tester to perform back-to-back testing without the need to stop to perform diagnostics on failing UUTs. In contrast, IEEE 1149.1/JTAG tests performed by in-circuit testers and JTAG pods require running diagnostics in-line, consuming test time as they analyze test data and record failure information before being able to begin tests on a new UUT.
The MRDM supports collecting data and diagnosing failures for any IEEE 1149.1, 1149.6, or on-chip instrument-based test, active or passive analog test, scripted or vector-based test, or any emulation-based functional test performed by Intellitech’s PT100 and PT100Pro (www.tmworld.com/article/CA6495158.html) concurrent testers, which can test 16, 32, or more UUTs at a time. All diagnostics and failure information is collected and calculated without user intervention by the MRDM software service running on centralized or distributed network computers.
“As Concurrent JTAG test has enabled more and more PCBs and ICs to be tested in shorter amounts of time, the bottleneck in production and burn-in has become the diagnostic processing time. What we have developed with the Mercury RDM is a method of handling the massive amount of test data that is present and coordinate that data with the different types of UUTs and test program versions running on the production floor,” said CJ Clark, CEO of Intellitech.
PXI downconverters operate to 26.5 GHz
Phase Matrix (www.phasematrix.com) officially announced the introduction of its family of GHz PXI RF/microwave (RF/MW) downconverter modules, which were developed in support of a Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) program sponsored by the US Navy (Navair PMA 260D, pao.navair.navy.mil/NAVAIR_programs.cfm). The company announced at Autotestcon 2006 (www.tmworld.com/article/CA6385760.html) that it was working on the downconverter development project in conjunction with BAE Systems (www.baesystems.com) and National Instruments (www.ni.com).
The module family consists of five PXI (3U) modules that can be configured into any one of six primary configurations operating over the frequency range of 100 KHz to 2.9 GHz, 2.7 to 26.5 GHz, and 100 KHz to 26.5 GHz. The modules include an RF input conditioner module (RFICM), microwave band input module (MBIM), low band input module (LBIM), local oscillator module (LOM), and IF output conditioner module (IFOCM).
Eric Starkloff, National Instruments’ director of product marketing, stated, “The Phase Matrix family of RF/MW downconverter modules provides a key capability that extends the application of the PXI industry standard.” Starkloff also stated that “NI looks forward to working with both Phase Matrix and BAE Systems in our joint initiative in applying Phase Matrix technology in support of both commercial and US Department of Defense Synthetic Instrument applications.”
Michael N. Granieri, Phase Matrix VP of Advanced programs/business development, stated that the PMI family of PXI downconverter modules will be available for delivery in Q1 2009, adding that the modules are intended for use with NI LabView, NI Modulation Toolkit, NI Spectral Analysis Toolkit, or user-provided DSP software employing the LabView FPGA module.
Geotest highlights ATEasy 7.0
Geotest-Marvin Test Systems (www.geotestinc.com) highlighted release 7 of its ATEasy test-development software and test executive. Designed for the development and deployment of test and measurement applications, ATEasy 7.0 features numerous enhancements to the test-development, run-time, and test-executive environments, including the ability to create libraries (DLLs) for use with external languages or by ATEasy drivers, enhanced debugging tools for the development of multi-threaded test applications, and test-executive support for external test executable programs.
"With this latest version, ATEasy continues to be the most user-friendly and feature-rich software package available on the market," said Ron Yazma, VP of software development, in a press release. "Packed with new features while maintaining backward compatibility, ATEasy 7.0 includes a host of improvements for enriched functionality and versatility."
Additional enhancements to Version 7.0 include support for ATML test results and test descriptions; USB interface support; batch-build capability; enhanced usability, including "back," "forward," "history navigation,” and auto recover features; and MHT file support.
Automated near-field signature analysis
Also announcing an official debut of a product was Huntron (www.huntron.com), which, in conjunction with Test Evolution (TEV), demonstrated an automated near-field signature-analysis system that combines the Huntron Access Robotic Probing Station, Huntron workstation software, and TEV’s paten-pending non-contact RF near-field probe technology. Huntron demonstrated the capability in conjunction with Metrikos, which was subsequently acquired by TEV, at Autotestcon 2007 (www.tmworld.com/article/CA6480908.html).
“Combining the Huntron Access Robotic Probing Station and modified Huntron workstation software with Test Evolution's new non-contact RF near field probe, with local synthetic measurement technology, sets the standard for near field signature analysis,” said Bill Curry, president of Huntron.
The Huntron prober, said Tom Farkas, founder of Metricos and now VP of TEV, “positions the compact Near Field RF Probe that sense's the EM fields emanating from the RF circuitry” of a unit under test. “A specific position in a near field can be considered a virtual test point (VTP) where a measurement can be made,” he said, adding that “Identical circuits emanate nearly identical fields at the same point. The Huntron workstation software stores RF near field signatures of known-good-circuit VTPs and is able to compare them with those of suspect circuits measured later. The deviations of the signatures show where failures may have occurred in the suspect circuits.”
ADLINK debuts 19-slot PXI chassis
ADLINK Technology (www.adlinktech.com) introduced a RoHS-compliant 3U 19-slot PXI chassis, the PXIS-2719, which provides one system controller slot, 18 peripheral card slots, a high-performance cooling design, and smart chassis management. This rack mount capable chassis can serve in high-capacity bench-top and rack-mount test-and-measurement applications.
The ADLINK PXIS-2719 chassis provides uniform air flow for each slot with a maximum 10 percent difference in temperature measured on load boards during testing. The fans pull cool air in from the bottom of the chassis, though the PXI modules, and then exhaust out the rear. This airflow design minimizes hot air draw from the rear of the rack where all other devices typically exhaust. The PXIS-2719 also includes smart chassis management, in which fan speed is controlled either automatically based on the internal temperature or manually through user input. Chassis temperature, fan speed, and system voltages are continually self-monitored to ensure system stability. The PXIS-2719 also supports remote management by providing chassis status through a standard RS-232 port connection. Remote power on/off control through this port is also provided.
An optional rack-mount kit is also available. This innovative kit allows the chassis to be recessed up to 10 cm in a cabinet rack to accommodate multiple wires/connectors or mass interconnect modules.
GTS highlights Bustec, Toellner, ASTER
Global Test Solutions (GTS, www.globaltestsolutions.com) highlighted the lineup of instrument makers it represents, including Bustec, which, based in Shannon, Ireland, and Escondido, CA, designs and manufactures a line of VXI products suitable for applications in the data acquisition, control, and test and measurement markets. Arlene Meadows, GTS principal, US sales manager for Bustec, and past president of the VXIbus consortium, announced that Bustec has joined the LXI Consortium as an informational member to expand its product mix with Ethernet-connected instruments. She added, “LXI is the next logical technology for pushing the boundaries of high-speed communication and processing. With Bustec’s on-board digital signal processing [DSP] and memory, integrating into any size system becomes a simple and quick process with the LXI tools.”
Meadows also announced that GTS and Toellner Electronic Instruments had signed an exclusive US distribution agreement under which GTS will distribute all of Toellner’s instrumentation products in the US, including programmable DC power supplies, amplifiers, and waveform generators. Ulrich Toellner, president and founder of Toellner, said in a prepared statement, “We found a distributor with strong technical skills, as well as deep market penetration across many industries.”
GTS also announced it has signed a US distribution agreement with Satori Technology, which develops USB-based RF sensors. “GTS offers Satori access to a wide U.S. network and customer base poised for growth. As more devices are designed for wireless control, networks require testing and verification,” said Eric Paterson, founder and chief technology officer of Satori Technology, in a press release.
Meadows also said that GTS is working with ASTER Technologies (www.aster-technologies.com). Pete Collins, sales and marketing manager for ASTER Technologies, was on hand at the GTS booth to describe ASTER’s board-level testability analysis tools. He also highlighted the Testability Management Action Group (tmag4dft.org), “a grass roots organization made up of test professionals who believe that success for testability in general, and design for testability (DFT) in particular, requires the involvement and the support of management at all levels.”
Receiver tester, reverse engineering, RF power, and more
Also at Autotestcon 2008, Averna (www.averna.com) demonstrated its Universal Receiver Tester (URT), which supports in-vehicle recording and playback to enable receiver test. Seica (www.seica.com) highlighted the reverse engineering capabilities of its Pilot line of flying probers. Bird (www.bird-technologies.com) highlighted new power-meter options for its SignalHawk portable spectrum analyzers. GaGe (www.gage-applied.com) highlighted its new BASE-8 CompuScope digitizer designed for OEM customers who require analog-to-digital conversion in their systems. KineticSystems (www.kscorp.com) highlighted its new family of Multi-function PXI Modules--the P216/210/206/205 cards, which are simultaneous sampling multi-function PXI modules that provide four differential analog input channels, 14/16-bit A/D resolution, and up to 2 Msample/s simultaneous sampling.
Highlights
01/31/200726.5-GHz down-converter in the works for PXI
09/20/2006VXI keeps hanging around
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