I wonder what my test set actually does. All I know is that I get a red light or green light resulting in a longer or shorter day. And why does a test pass when I run it once and sometimes fails during the second or third attempt? <Read More>These were the questions that ran through my mind many times while trying to diagnose and repair fighter aircraft faults.
The good news is that some aircraft tester manufacturers have heard this and implemented a powerful tool which enables the user to view what is going on behind the scenes. This tool is the test report and when it’s available, it allows the user to view, in most cases, each test step in greater detail, helping and allowing them to quickly diagnose and repair faults.
Details within the test report include the general test information (description, test type, aircraft tail number, etc.), but more importantly, it includes parametric test data. The test data explains what the tester is doing in each of the tests, what is being tested (signal name and pin number), the test type (resistance, DC or AC voltage measurement, timing etc.), the test limits, and the actual measured value.
So when I have this magical test report, I no longer wonder what my tester actually does. This data points me to a specific connector or pin to begin repairing the faults.