AT4 Wireless says that its BITE system offered a competitive price point compared with other solutions when it was launched in 2001. Its scalable software architecture makes extensive use of software-defined radio capabilities, a feature that was not widespread in 2001 but that has allowed the system to evolve as the Bluetooth standard itself has evolved. Today, the BITE tester supports all the different versions of the Bluetooth technology, such as enhanced data rates and low energy, without major hardware changes. Furthermore, its advanced automation capabilities enable unattended testing of Bluetooth devices, reducing certification costs and time-to-market. AT4 says that customers in the testing ecosystem (third-party laboratories, chipset vendors, and and device vendors) use BITE for pretesting or conformance testing.

The CompuScope Octopus family was introduced in 2006 to meet a need for high-channel-count, high-speed, and high-resolution digitizers. The digitizers were introduced with 12- and 14-bit resolutions and offered a variety of maximum sampling rates from 10 to 125 Msamples/s. Gage says that one key differentiating features of the Octopus digitizer was the inclusion of high-performance RF connectors on eight channels, which enhanced the performance of the analog front end; competitors at the time used high-density mass terminations rather than standard instrumentation connectors. The inclusion of software-development kits for virtually any programming language, including Matlab and LabView, makes it possible for engineers to integrate the digitizers into various software systems. System-level designs are enabled by the instrument’s complete clock and trigger connectivity. An external clock or a reference clock can be simultaneously generated to allow for the synchronization of multiple instruments to the same clock domain, which is imperative when measuring multiple channels across varied time bases. Analog-trigger I/O hardware simplifies the integration of the Octopus Digitizer with other test instruments and experiments. This connectivity allows the seamless integration of multiple cards, and systems of 64 or more channels are easy to deploy.

The IFR 6000 ramp test set was based on the Aeroflex IFR 4000 NAV/COMM test set that brought portability and ease of use to the avionics ramp test market in 2003. That tester took complex avionics tests and boiled them down to just one main user screen for each functional mode of operation. The IFR 6000, introduced the next year, replaced three test instruments with one handheld test set. It is small and lightweight but can be used for ramp or bench testing. The IFR 6000 simulates the ground station or airborne environment for performing tests of transponder Modes A/C/S. It performs test such as Mode S level 1-4, FAR Part 43 appendix F (includes proposed Part 43 appendix F extension), European Enhanced Surveillance; Distance Measuring Equipment (DME); Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance (TCAS); Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B); and Traffic Information Service (TIS). The unit can provide accurate measurement of transponder transmitting frequency/peak power and receiver sensitivity, and it can store test results for future analysis.

Networks must deliver expected reliability and quality for services such as multicast, VoD, and VoIP. Manufacturers, ISPs, carriers and enterprise LAN administrators use IxChariot to reinforce SLAs through visibility into network performance and to monitor live networks in real time for responsiveness. IxChariot includes over 150 built-in application scripts that replicate enterprise, triple-play, and Internet traffic to allow ISPs and enterprises to simulate device and system performance under real-world conditions. It also measures throughput, jitter, packet loss, and end-to-end delay, assessing application traffic impact in emulation of real-world application behavior at the transport layer at high speeds. Developed in 2003 and comprising the IxChariot Console, Performance Endpoints, and IxProfile, IxChariot could replicate hundreds of protocols across thousands of network endpoints for thorough network and device performance assessment and testing—allowing administrators to perform low-bandwidth tests at any time or to perform daily off-peak performance measurements. In 2009, IxChariot was extended into the virtual world, with IxChariot-VM enabling it to measure performance for cloud-hosted applications. In 2010, Ixia combined IxChariot with its Test Conductor multivendor test automation framework to automate testing and reduce the time and cost of testing. IxChariot now offers step-by-step debugging support and simple configuration and reporting.

Since its introduction in 1998, the J750 has achieved wide market acceptance for testing microcontroller, FPGA, and digital audio/baseband devices. With its site-aware IG-XL software (automating program development for multisite test), the J750 delivered step function cost-of-test savings for multisite test. The system features a zero-footprint “tester in a test head” designed to minimize ATE floor space, and it has a scalable architecture offering up to 1024 pins. When introduced, the J750 addressed the technical requirements for microcontrollers and offered performance headroom to meet technical needs on customers’ product roadmaps (increasing embedded memory, digital I/O pin count, and embedded converters) while still enabling customers to increase site count. Customers continue to put new devices on the J750, and the system is expanding its reach into the consumer A/V, and 2G/3G broadband device segments. The hardware and software architecture of J750 enabled derivative product family members to be introduced and deliver cost-of-test economics for the image sensor, LCD driver, and electrical wafer sort (EWS) market segments. It also enabled third parties to design instrument options that go onto the J750.

AFL says that its M200 defined the micro optical time-domain reflectometer market when it was introduced in 2006. Available in single-mode, multimode, and quad models, the indoor/outdoor handheld test instrument continues to help engineers troubleshoot both existing fiber-optic networks as well as new installations. AFL enhanced the instrument in 2011 with the addition of Touch and Test software, fiber-endface inspection, image capture, and reporting and analysis software.

Introduced in 2000, the Agilent PSG family of microwave signal generators features an integrated vector signal generator up to 44 GHz, an analog signal generator up to 67 GHz, and a microwave analog signal generator that breaks the 1-W output power barrier. Agilent says the analog models combine high power and high signal purity with outstanding phase noise, harmonic, and spurious performance over a wide frequency range; the vector models, which generate digitally modulated signals up to 44 GHz, are especially useful to radar, satellite, and communication system designers who need to test their systems with realistic signals. The PSG signal generators evolved from the original A-series to the current D-series, which was introduced in June 2004. Since then, the PSG has continued to evolve with the addition of capabilities such as ultra-high output power to overcome test system losses, ultra-low phase noise for demanding receiver tests, multi-source phase coherency, and wideband modulation with up to 2 GHz of bandwidth. When used with Agilent Signal Studio software applications, the PSG can generate many communication formats including GSM, WCDMA, LTE, GPS, digital video, WLAN, WiMAXTM and Bluetooth, as well as multitone, NPR, and advanced radar signals.

In March 1999, Yokogawa introduced the PZ4000 power analyzer, which combined technologies found in Yokogawa’s WT Series Power Analyzers and DL Series ScopeCorders into one instrument. The PZ4000 is essentially three instruments in one. First, it is an electrical power analyzer with a measurement accuracy of 0.1% of reading plus 0.025% of range; the bandwidth is from DC to 1 MHz for power, and users can install up to four input elements (wattmeters) for I/O and efficiency measurements. Second, the PZ4000 provides digital oscilloscope waveform acquisition and analysis. Conventional DSOs typically cannot be used for power measurements due to lack of accuracy and dedicated power inputs. The PZ4000 solves this with its isolated inputs. It also provides 12-bit vertical resolution and up to 4 Mpoints of acquisition memory. The instrument easily measures peak, inrush, and start-up functions, and also makes cycle-by-cycle power calculations. Finally, the PZ4000 is a harmonic analyzer. Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) can be measured on waveforms with a fundamental frequency of 20 Hz to 6.4 kHz with analysis up to 500 orders.

Introduced in 2000, the Synergy family of environmental test chamber controllers was designed to help users develop, control, and document their environmental testing processes. At the time of its introduction under the VersaTenn V brand, the first Synergy controller provided a GUI; multiple communication interfaces including GPIB, Ethernet, and RS-232; a 64-channel datalogger with USB memory stick support; and a built-in Web-server for remote monitoring and control. Now in the fifth generation, Synergy controllers are available in several configurations including the Synergy Nano, a compact ¼-DIN sized package that’s 1/20th of the original controller’s volume. Driven by continuous improvement of the application software, the Synergy controllers have expanded from controllers that support temperature, temperature/humidity, and altitude chambers to controllers that support a growing number of applications, including thermal vacuum chambers (space simulators), thermal shock, process ovens, plant growth chambers, HALT/HASS chambers, and wind tunnels. The Windows CE-based software also offers bar-code reader support for simple setup and configuration, an FTP server for data and program transfer, and SMTP support for automatic alarm notification e-mails and test data delivery. With their standardized user, electrical, and software interfaces, the Synergy controllers find uses in both new equipment and retrofit applications.

As Spirent’s flagship test platform for testing networks, TestCenter is employed by network equipment manufacturers, service providers, and enterprises that are employing the Layer 2-7 IP and Ethernet technologies required to deliver any application over any network and on any device. Spirent TestCenter, introduced in 2005, is a unified performance test platform that can sustain growth across many fast-growing industries, including virtualization, cloud computing, mobile backhaul, enhanced packet core, and high-speed Ethernet. Spirent TestCenter’s offers the realism, performance, scale, versatility, cost, and investment sustainability that enable it to emulate real network topologies. It delivers a large suite of multiprotocol productivity wizards designed to quickly configure, emulate, and measure the behavior and scalability of blended, Layer 2-7 multiplay services. Spirent TestCenter offers a Layer 2-7 converged IP/Ethernet services UI and API architecture; dynamic multiprotocol, multithreaded performance modules; a Layer 2-7 10GbE performance module; a Layer 2-7 40/100GbE performance module; a virtualized x86 Layer 2-7 test system; 19.2-Tbit capacity in a single rack; and NoCode automation with GUI programming.