Test & Measurement World Blogs
Guard Traces - Use 'Em, or Not?
Recently, there has been a lively discussion in the various EMC and signal integrity forums on guard traces and whether they are useful in reducing crosstalk between closely-spaced traces in your high-speed designs. My best “lawyer-like” answer is, “it depends”. Another common question: “Do you terminate them in their characteristic impedance, ground them at one ... More
About this blog
Kenneth Wyatt is an independent consultant and specialist in electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) design, test and troubleshooting. In The EMC Blog, he discusses issues, trends, EMC design, and product troubleshooting techniques. One specialty is his use of do-it-yourself probes and use of low-cost test equipment and measurement techniques for evaluating EMC issues on the workbench.
New 100BASE-T PMD Jig Prototype
At the IOL, we have been using the same style jig for our 100BASE-T PMD (Clause 25) test system for many years which allows us to interface a 100BASE-T device to our digital oscilloscope. The jig is made up of an RJ45 connector contained in a plastic sleeve, a PCB that has all the components mounted on it, and the TX and RX pairs are routed through the board to SMA connectors ... More
About this blog
The technical staff of the University of New Hampshire InterOperability Lab (UNH-IOL) gives insight into interoperability & standards conformance for data communications, telecom, and storage technologies.
Does OIF have to do everything?
Is there a paranoid conspiracy among the producers of technology standard specifications? Was I once a co-conspirator? Did they give me a mind wipe when I stopped working for The Man?Why do spec’s leave gaping holes? Is there some political or legal reason that they don’t want to commit? Is this why a 3rd party has to come in? Is it a liability thing? The Optical Internetworking Foru ... More
About this blog
In Eye on Standards, Ransom Stephens will be tracking the developments with current, evolving, new, and emerging technology standards and what they mean for you, the test engineer. From the IEEE to ANSI, IEC, and consortiums such as LXI, PXIe, USB, and others, Stephens will be there to help you close the ‘eye’ on your next test project.
The tasteful test bench
In my previous column (“5060-9436”), I briefly mentioned the inevitable demise of user-repairable test instruments due to age and the dwindling numbers of parts-donor instruments. Unfortunately, current-generation instruments include custom ICs (ASICs), and many manufacturers no longer offer service manuals or schematics. All this points to a future in which hardware hackers will fin ... More
About this blog
Brad Thompson reports on the life of a hobbyist engineer who tries to keep vintage test instruments running as long as possible.
[RF] Space, The Final Frontier
“These are the voyages of the starship PXI. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new applications; to seek out new markets and new segments; to boldly go where no modular platform has gone before.” I love it that splitting infinitives is now in fashion! Did you know that the root of the rule forbidding splitting infinitives was that it could not be translated precisely int ... More
About this blog
Larry Desjardin provides commentary and insight on topics outside that of traditional box instruments, including modular instrumentation, embedded test, and alternative test techniques.
Participate in the T&MW reader survey
At T&MW, we’re always looking for ways to bring you the information that can best help you do your job. To do that, we need your input. We’ve put together a survey that asks things such as: What you do in test, How you ended up in test, What satisfies you about test, What frustrates you about test, and What challenges do you expect in the near future. Please take a few minutes fr ... More
About this blog
Senior Technical Editor Martin Rowe covers topics relating to general-purpose instrumentation, compliance, communications test, and anything else that comes along
A Knobless World?
A couple of months ago Scope Junction ran an informal survey on the preferred user interfaces for an oscilloscope. The majority responded with a preference for “old school” knob and button interfaces. This is not surprising, as the general interface for an oscilloscope has not changed that much over the last few decades. Users have grown accustomed to st ... More
About this blog
Matthew Friedman is a product manager at National Instruments. In "Everyday Measurements," he discusses the latest trends in test and measurement and how they affect both the professional and personal lives of engineers.
DesignCon 2012 Panel: Test gurus share vision to accelerate your ‘time to answer’
The countdown begins: On Wednesday next at DesignCon 2012 I’ll be moderating a panel comprising four of the sharpest minds in the electronics industry as they explore the cutting edge of technology and what it means for you, the test engineer. It’s important to note at this point that this panel is a new addition to DesignCon, and its primary purpose is to be an interactive forum for ... More
About this blog
Patrick Mannion, editor in chief of Test & Measurement World and EDN, comments on test, globalization, measurement, machine vision, economics, nanotechnology, the engineering profession, and topics of general interest.
Space design challenge 2011
2011 will ring in another year for a NASA space design competition. For students who wish to help further space exploration and development, ASA is searching for college and graduate level students In the US who are interested in devising technology for the 2011 Space Tech Engineering Design Challenge. ASA has requested that those who have competed in other NASA contests, such as Lunabotics or RAS ... More
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In this blog, Test & Measurement World contributing editors comment on the state of engineering education and careers for recent engineering graduates.
Team Hyper has another strong showing at Arizona Regional
Despite another strong performance at the Arizona Regional last week, Team Hyper 69 came up just short again, and was eliminated in the semifinals of the First Robotics Competition on Saturday. The team’s overall record is now 17-7 in 2009 Lunacy competition. The team opened competition with an impressive 8-1 record in the qualifying round, putting them in second place out of 44 t ... More
About this blog
Test & Measurement World contributing editor Jessica MacNeil profiles the various engineering internships and education opportunities available to students and their experiences in the industry. Jessica is a senior Journalism major at Northeastern University.
