Test & measurement
Feature sponsored by
Taking advanTage of a CompaCT pXi plaTform for mobile TesT and measuremenT appliCaTions
The conventional PXI platform has provided a modular approach to test and measurement, control, and data acquisition applications where multiple, highly- specialised instruments can be leveraged to perform automated production tests. However, the intrinsic benefits of flexibility, cost-effectiveness, measurement speed, and tight test synchronisation that come with PXI test equipment have been difficult to translate over to applications outside of the lab due to its lack of portability. The typical PXI bridge setup requires a desktop expansion card, chassis module, and respective interconnect that greatly inhibit the mobility of the setup. ADLINK’s new PXES-2314T sidesteps this traditional shortcoming by leveraging a portable PXI Express (PXIe) chassis with a Thunderbolt 3 port to accomplish up to a 40 Gbps data transfer via the USB Type-C connection. By removing the desktop expansion card from the equation, a fully capable, on-the-go test setup is attained simply with the PXES-2314T, a Thunderbolt cable, a laptop/notebook computer, and a power adapter. This article explores the differences between standalone test equipment versus modular PXI-based equipment, discussing the benefits and considerations of each for a test engineer. This leads into the unique niche the new portable PXI-based PXES-2314T platform fills by allowing for highly accurate and flexible, mobile testing.
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THE LATEST TREND FOR ATE: PXI The PXI platform is a new test equipment standard that the PXI modules, chassis, and controller all conform to for interoperability where an off-the-shelf module selected from almost any OEM could then be readily placed into a chassis for nearly plug-and-play, custom testing capabilities. The PXI Express (PXIe) backplane enables
flexibility and high-speed testing capabilities between slots. It employs a PCI Express (PCIe) bus with additional signals for dedicated timing and synchronisation between cards where the embedded controller often runs Windows or the latest processing technology. PCIe replaced the shared bus topology of PCI with a shared switch that provides each device with direct access to the bus. Information to and from a slot is sent and received via grouped data lines, with lane widths that can vary from x2 to x32: this way, 4Gbps of dedicated bandwidth can be achieved with a x16 slot (or a group of 16 lanes).
STANDALONE AND MODULAR TEST AND MEASUREMENT EQUIPMENT Standalone equipment allows for relatively intuitive operation with soft panels for customised viewing and knobs/dials for control. By nature, this type of equipment is self-contained. However, these testing capabilities come with the need to purchase different units to suit various testing purposes adequately. For this reason, engineering test labs will require multiple power supplies, signal generators, VNAs, spectrum analysers,
January 2023 Instrumentation Monthly
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