NI's digital video analyzer automates HDMI tests

-- Test & Measurement World, 6/28/2011 7:00:00 AM

National Instruments' digital video analyzer automates a wide range of tests for the latest HDMI sources, such as set-top boxes, Blu-ray players, and DVD players. The analyzer uses configuration-based test steps that automate measurements of the high-definition multimedia interface, including HDMI 1.4 protocol, 3-D video, and picture quality. With hardware based on the NI PXI Express platform and software designed for mutlicore computing, engineers can use the analyzer to achieve precision measurements of HDMI content in a fraction of the time required by conventional video-test solutions.

The NI digital video analyzer teams with NI picture-quality analysis software to measure streaming audio and video quality and eliminate challenges inherent with subjective operator inspection. Using the system's variety of measurements, you can analyze streaming video for defects, such as macroblocking, stuck frames, and audio drops, which single-frame static image analysis cannot detect. Additionally, you can conduct measurements of total picture quality with pixel-to-pixel reference tests, such as peak signal-to-noise ratio and structural similarity.

Leveraging the PXI Express architecture, the analyzer incorporates modules capable of performing multiple HDMI measurements in a single compact chassis. The instrument includes the PXIe-6545 200-MHz digital I/O module, the PXI-2171 deserializer and decryption module, and the PXI-7813R reconfigurable I/O FPGA module, all of which integrate the NI video measurement suite and picture-quality analysis software.

Prices for the NI digital video analyzer start at $14,999. Prices for the NI picture-quality analysis software start at $4999. To learn more about the digital video analyzer, as well as watch a webcast, go to www.ni.com/vms.

National Instruments, www.ni.com.