Product Update

Designed to improve the accuracy of ground-based radar, the $160,000 (base price) Aeroflex PN9002 pulse-to-pulse radar stability test system can replace $1 million-and-up test systems built in-house. The PN9002 acts as a "micro-radar," providing pulsed signals to the unit under test (UUT) and analyzing the pulses received from the UUT. The system covers 400 MHz to 18 GHz in a scalable configuration.

The PN9002 employs a novel measurement scheme. Traditional pulse-to-pulse stability measurement systems perform amplitude and phase stability measurements by averaging the radar pulses over the "on" as well as "off" portion of each pulse. With such an approach, samples taken during each pulse's "off" portion add significant measurement noise. In contrast, the PN9002 analyzes radar pulses only during the "on" portion of each pulse—eliminating "off" portion measurement noise and allowing dynamic range to reach –79 dBc.

Aeroflex, Plainview, NY. 516-694-6700; www.aeroflex.com .

Yokogawa's DL7400 scopes let you troubleshoot circuits and systems that contain both analog and digital signals. The DL7440 and DL7480 go head-to-head with Agilent's 54622D oscilloscopes that combine analog and digital channels (the 16 logic inputs are options on the Yokogawa scopes). The DL7440 has four analog channels while the DL7480 has eight.

Both scopes sample at speeds up to 2 Gsamples/s in interleave mode (1 Gsample/s without interleave) with 500-MHz analog bandwidth. When running all channels, the scopes provide 2 Msamples of data storage per channel (base model). With half the channels, you get double the memory. Optionally, you can get up to 16 Msamples on half the channels and 8 Msamples on all channels.

Each scope provides two USB ports, an Ethernet port, an IEEE 488 port, and an optional SCSI port. The USB ports let you control the scope from a PC or directly with a mouse and keyboard. Free software lets you control the scopes from a PC through the USB or Ethernet ports by clicking on the virtual front-panel controls. The included Web servers let you control the instrument and view waveforms with a browser.

Prices: DL7440—$13.695; DL7480—$22,695. Yokogawa, Newnan, GA. 770-253-7000; www.us.yokogawa.com .

The R4870 can perform Bluetooth RF and interoperability tests in accordance with Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) specifications. To verify a Bluetooth module's RF performance, the R4870 can test output power, power control, modulation characteristics, initial carrier-frequency tolerance, and receiver sensitivity.

It can automatically start testing of Bluetooth modules via its embedded Host Control Interface (HCI), and it can simulate a "dirty" transmitter signal (an irregularly modulated signal used to test a product's receiver characteristics). It has a frequency resolution of 1 kHz and level resolution of 1 dB when conducting transmitter tests from 2402 to 2480 MHz. It can help manufacturers perform prequalification testing to accelerate their certification process by a Bluetooth Qualification Test Facility (BQTF), and it can serve in manufacturing test.

Price: $24,800. Advantest America Measuring Solutions, Edison, NJ. 732-346-2600; www.advantest.com .

Xantrex Technology's XMP 2600 multi-output programmable DC power system can test a variety of DUTs or replace multiple power supplies. The system's 19x5.25-in. (3U high) mainframe accommodates up to eight modules, providing from 160 W to 2.4 kW; the software within the system's mainframe controller can instantly reconfigure the system to provide eight channels with different output-voltage and current ranges: from 0 to 8 V to 0 to 160 V at 1.25 A to 80 A.

Price: $15,900 for a fully populated system (eight modules). Xantrex Technology, Burnaby, BC, Canada. 800 667 8422; www.xantrex.com/xmp .

The Corelis ScanExpress high-volume production boundary-scan test and in-circuit programming system can concurrently test in-system program flash devices and CPLDs on up to 1024 boards using a single PC and a single operator. ScanExpress concurrently applies test and programming vectors via IEEE 1149.1 Test Access Ports (TAPs) while simultaneously verifying results. Sustained test clock frequencies reach 80 MHz. The ScanExpress system's scalable components include the PCI-1149.1/Turbo boundary-scan controller and the ScanExpress Runner software.

Base price: $30,000. Corelis, Cerritos, CA. 562-926-6727; www.corelis.com.

Frame grabbers in the Matrox Morphis family capture video from multiple inputs and provide real-time JPEG2000 compression. The Morphis captures data from NTSC, PAL, RS-170, and CCIR video sources with a dual decoder design. Standard features include 16 TTL auxiliary I/Os and an RS-485 serial interface.

Base price: $895. Matrox Imaging, Dorval, QC, Canada. 514-685-2630; www.matrox.com/imaging .

When you don't need a $1000 6.5-digit DMM but still need a powerful meter for your bench, look to B&K's Model 5492, a competitor to the Fluke 45.

The meter gives you dual 5.5-digit displays that you can set to provide 120,000, 40,000, or 4000 counts. The meter performs all the standard measurements such as DCV, DCA, true RMS ACV and ACA, frequency, and resistance (two-wire or four-wire configurations). It also provides minimum, maximum, and hold features. The dual displays let you see a resistance measurement and the voltage that drives it.

The 5492 comes with a standard RS-232 serial port; an optional IEEE 488 port is available for automated test systems. Price: $695. B&K Precision, Yorba Linda, CA. 714-921-9095; www.bkprecision.com.

Custom neural-network processors provide a self-learning capability for the ZiCAM Zi-640 640x480-pixel digital video camera. You can use a PC-resident teaching program called ZiCAM Teacher (which comes with the camera) to teach the Zi-640 what to look for. Once taught, the camera's 312-neuron zero-instruction-set processor operates without host PC control, making real-time decisions at a rate of 30 frames/s.

Base price: $3995. Pulnix, Sunnyvale, CA. 408-747-0300; www.pulnix.com .

The Model 2500 humidity generator provides NIST-traceable calibration of humidity sensors both on-site and in the field. Its ControLog automation software and automatic calibration control features make the Model 2500 easy to use, enabling users to get the system running within 1 hour of delivery. The Model 2500 employs the two-pressure technique recently validated by NCSL as the intrinsic/derived standard for humidity calibration (RISP-5).

Base price: $30,000. Thunder Scientific, Albuquerque, NM. 505-265-8701; www.thunderscientific.com .

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