Test Connections - May 2011 - Newsletter | Marvin Test Solutions, Inc.

May 2011 - NewsletterFocus OnSolution SpotlightProduct HighlightIn the NewsDid You Know?

We hope you enjoy this month's issue of Test Connections which includes new product updates and news events.

Please send your comments or suggestions regarding this newsletter to marketing@MarvinTest.com.

FPGA-Based Instrumentation: Performance and Flexibility for Test Solutions

The advent of user-configurable FPGA modules for PXI makes performance and configurability benefits of FPGAs available to system developers and end users and adds new and advanced capabilities for PXI test systems.

Satellite Manufacturer Uses PXI-Based Interface Simulators for Design Verification

Geotest's PXI products provide monitoring features to identify and resolve sub-system integration problems early in the satellite design process.

Extend the Functionality of Geotest's GX3500 FlexDIO FPGA Product

New expansion cards let you leverage the features of the GX3500 to create highly integrated, single slot, 3U PXI instrument solutions.

Newsworthy Happenings

Check out the latest news and events from Geotest, at home and around the world. Plus, Geotest introduces new Western Regional sales manager, Mike Schraeder.

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MXI-Express BIOS Compatibility If you are using the MXI-Express interface for controlling your PXI systems, you may have encountered problems with recognizing PXI/PXIe devices installed in the chassis (code 12 or 31 in Device Manager), with your computer locking up at boot, or with Windows crashes (blue screen).Read on to learn more.

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FPGA-Based Instrumentation: Performance and Flexibility for Test Solutions

In the automatic test equipment (ATE) sector, technology advances and constantly increasing demands for greater efficiencies, more capabilities and quicker time to market contribute to a common goal for test and measurement systems: Develop performance test systems with specialized needs faster and with lower life-cycle costs. In a May 2010 Test & Measurement World article, Richard Quinnell, contributing technical editor, states that the advent of PXI Express has allowed faster data handling and that developers increasingly turn to field-programmable gate array (FPGA) technology for handling these data. FPGA-based
designs create an environment that supports not only more efficient data handling, but also offers greater flexibility than ever before when designing a customized interface or instrument. However, the FPGAs in PXI modules have been nearly inaccessible to system developers and end users. Vendors provide the module upgrades and enhancements, and users are not able to easily incorporate their own ideas. However, during the last two to three years, the introduction of user-configurable FPGA modules for PXI has changed that. Now, FPGA performance and configurability benefits are available to both system developers and end users, adding a new range of design possibilities for PXI systems.
Presenting user-configurable FPGAs At the recent Electrotest show in the U.K., Victor Femandes, European sales manager at Geotest, gave a presentation about user-configurable FPGA modules for PXI systems. In it, he emphasized that the use of FPGA-based test instruments has grown exponentially over the last couple of years. He cites the following benefits and advantages as big factors in this rapid growth. High reliability — With an FPGA-based design, the instrument’s functionality is insulated from the test system’s operating system (OS), so if your application or OS	Related Resources For more information about working with user-configurable FPGA test systems, take a look at these resources on the Geotest website. Guidelines for designing an FPGA board An FPGA-based solution for testing legacy video displays Controlling a GX3500 FPGAusing reads and writes
crashes, the hardware will continue to operate. Low latency — Without an instrument control bus between the instrument logic and the measurement, decision-making and signal processing can occur as soon as a sample has been acquired. Reconfigurability — FPGAs aren’t only programmable; they are also reprogrammable, which means the user has the flexibility to reconfigure the device to accommodate application or design changes. High performance — FPGAs are fast and parallel. Computation that can't be done with a microprocessor may be possible with an FPGA. True parallelism — A single FPGA can often implement the same measurement or signal processing algorithm in parallel, providing a high-bandwidth signal processing engine. The presentation outlined two types of FPGA products: software flexible/hardware fixed and software/hardware flexible. Software flexible/hardware fixed products The use of FPGAs on a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) board allows users to Install new firmware to gain new features. Create unique functions for customers. Upgrade and modify module functions in the field, which helps expand a product’s capabilities and life cycle. Software and hardware flexible products There are three main types of products associated with this category: cPCI Digital — These products are low cost and are typically targeted for embedded/system solutions. They do not take advantage of PXI backplane resources (e.g., triggers, clock) and are typically not effective for test and measurement applications. PXI Analog — These products may appear to be good, multifunction solutions, but in reality they offer expensive, low-performance, mixed-signal solutions. PXI Digital —These products are focused on providing custom solutions for high-performance, complex test applications. Femandes’ presentation highlights these PXI Digital products (FPGA Flex DIO) and presents a compelling case for why these types of products are the best choice for addressing complex, custom digital test applications. FPGA test system solutions from GeotestGeotest is at the forefront of the move to user-configurable FPGA modules for PXI test systems. The company offers software and hardware components to help harness the speed and flexibility of FPGA test solutions. Its offerings include: GX3500 Digital I/O FLEX FPGA PXI Card — A user-configurable 3U FPGA PXI card that has 160 digital I/O signals for specific application needs. The card employs the Altera Cyclone III FPGA and features more than 55,000 logic elements and 2.34 MB of memory. The 3U PXI FPGA card GX3500 can also accept an expansion card assembly that can customize the interface to the UUT, eliminating the need for additional external boards that can be difficult to integrate into a test system. The GX3500 is supplied with drivers and a virtual panel making it easy to control the card as well as debug and integrate or load the compiled FPGA firmware into the GX3500. GX3500 Expansion Boards — Geotest offers a family of logic interface expansion modules for its GX3500 FlexDIO PXI FPGA product. The GX3501, GX3509, GX3510, and GX3540 provide multi-channel interfaces for LVTTL, differential TTL, mLVDS and ECL logic families respectively. The GX3501, GX3509 and GX3510 feature 80 I/O channels with each channel independently configurable as an input or output. The GX3540 features 20 input and 20 output ECL channels with a selectable termination to -2V or -5.2V. Geotest depends on the success of its customers' applications. If you have specialized instrumentation needs, an FGPA-based solution may be the solution. Click here to see how Geotest can customize a testing solution for you.

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Satellite Manufacturer Uses PXI-Based Interface Simulators for Design Verification

Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL), based in the U.K., designs, manufactures and operates high-performance satellites and ground systems. Traditionally, satellite development has been a linear process, specifying everything up front, then designing, testing, assembling and verifying the flight unit. This approach requires not only a great deal of preliminary design work, but also a lot of design rework during sub-system integration.

GX7300 3U PXI Chassis with Smart Features

To reduce the amount of rework, SSTL uses simulators during the development process. Developers can use simulators to discover and resolve design issues early in the process, and they can use interface simulators to identify and resolve sub-system integration problems. Problem/challenge SSTL is currently involved in developing a simulator framework product that will allow the company to redeploy a common single platform for a variety of applications. The company had two primary concerns:

The potential for UUT damage. A single-point failure of the simulation product can destroy millions of dollars of flight equipment and cause extensive development delays.

Flexibility. SSTL needed a solution that was reconfigurable to its specific needs.

Solution SSTL needed to find a reliable simulation solution that fit within its budgetary restrictions. After researching available solutions, SSTL decided to base the hardware interfaces primarily on the PXI Standard, with Geotest-Marvin Test Systems and Pickering Interfaces as the main suppliers. "The biggest draw to the Geotest PXI chassis products is the safety monitoring features," said Mathew Maher, simulation team leader at SSTL. "This provides our second line of defense for the test equipment." The monitoring allows the company to take remedial action before a potential failure becomes critical. The equipment's first line of defense varies depending on the interface. Isolated interfaces are best. For more complex interfaces, SSTL uses Geotest’s GX3500 FPGA architecture with its daughter board interfaces as a development platform. The GX3500 FPGA board also addresses the flexibility problem. Because the space industry doesn't usually follow formal standards, the company needed a solution that it could configure to meet its needs. The GX3500 FPGA board provides the perfect platform for this customization. It comes with a wide range of drivers and is not locked into a single vendor solution. Ultimately, the decision to go with Geotest rested on the fact that its solutions fit SSTL's requirements rather than forcing SSTL's requirements to fit the solution. If Geotest didn't offer the right product, it agreed to develop the product that SSTL needed. "We design our products and Geotest designs the test components," said Maher. "This is in comparison to having a supplier telling us how to design our products to fit into their offerings." A win-win relationship SSTL's relationship with Geotest, though still in its infancy, has been successful and rewarding. According to Maher, the custom developments that Geotest is undertaking for SSTL are the result of long conversations and good cooperation. He added that Geotest is developing products SSTL needs, but the products are general enough to be worthy sales products in their own right. It's a win-win situation.

If you can't find a testing solution that meets your needs, Geotest will build it for you. To learn more about how we can customize the right system for you, click here or contact your regional sales representative.

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Extend the Functionality of Geotest's GX3500 FlexDIO FPGA Product

Geotest's addition of four new logic interface expansion modules for its GX3500 FlexDIO Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) product line offers customers greater flexibility to create custom digital test instrument solutions. The GX3500 can accommodate custom or standard expansion boards that plug in directly as mezzanine cards and don't need an additional PXI slot. In addition, you can now configure the GX3500 with different logic interface boards. Expanding functionality Geotest's new GX3500 expansion modules provide multichannel interfaces for LVTTL, differential TTL, mLVDS and ECL logic families. Here is an overview of the new expansion modules:

GX3501 — 80 channel TTL buffer expansion board. Configurable direction on a per-pin basis.

GX3509 — 80 channel differential TTL expansion board. Configurable direction on a per-pin basis.

GX3510 — 80 channel mLVDS expansion board. Configurable direction on a per-pin basis.

GX3510 - 80 Channel mLVDS Buffer Expansion Board For GX3500

GX3540 — ECL expansion board featuring 20 differential inputs and 20 differential outputs with selectable terminations to -2 or -5.2 volts.

GX3571 — Video generator expansion board that supports VGA, composite and S-video formats.

By combining these expansion boards with the compact size and features of the GX3500, you can create highly integrated, single slot, 3U PXI instrument solutions. For your convenience, the GX3500 is also available preconfigured with a factory-installed expansion board, designated as a GX36xx, allowing you order with a single part number.

If you would like to take advantage of the extra functionality and convenience that these expansion modules provide, contact Geotest.

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Newsworthy Happenings

News Geotest Welcomes Mike Schraeder as New Western Regional Sales Manager Our team would like to introduce you to our new Western Regional Sales Manager, Mike Schraeder. Mike joins Geotest with extensive experience in the test & measurement and semiconductor markets. His experience and knowledge will give him a head start in working with our western U.S. customers on their applications. We welcome our western U.S. customers to contact Mike about their applications or any questions concerning their specific test needs. Contact Mike: Email: mikes@geotestinc.com Phone: 949 315 1032
At ElectroTest, Geotest Helps Test Engineers Get the Bugs Out On April 7, Geotest joined a distinguished consortium of T&M and ATE professionals for the ElectroTest PCB Debug and Test Exhibition. As part of the ElectroTestExpo consortium, Geotest participated in the second annual board test and debug event at Bletchley Park. The day's events included tabletop exhibitions manned by specialists and engineers from 10 of the world's leading board test and debug tools vendors. In addition, Geotest participated in the event’s seminar program. Victor Femandes, Geotest’s sales manager for Europe, delivered his presentation "User-Configurable FPGA Modules for Modular PXI Systems.” Following the presentation, Femandes joined a panel of experts responding to attendees’ questions about how they can take advantage of the flexibility of field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) to cost-effectively increase flexibility and the speed of their test systems. Events The following events might be of interest to Geotest customers and associates. You can find a list of these events on the Geotest website.
SMT/Hybrid/Packaging Conference May 3-5 Nuremberg, Germany Join Geotest at Booth 7-125, enjoy half-day tutorials that offer information and results first hand and learn about cutting-edge developments in electronics manufacturing from international experts from industry and science. AMRAAM IUC May 16-20 Tucson, Arizona Join Geotest and other experts for sessions and exhibits that address how to maximize AMRAAM effectiveness. Electronics & Automation 2011 May 25-27 Jaarbeurs Utrecht, Netherlands Visit with Geotest at Booth 8B055 to learn about the latest innovations in electronics testing.	Webinar Mixed Signal Testing Using Next-Generation Modular Test Platforms Learn how you can use the PXI platform to build flexible, cost-effective and compact mixed-signal test systems. This seminar is available on request. To learn more or schedule a webinar session for your group, contact Geotest.
Paris Air Show June 20-26 Join Geotest at Booth 3-C84 at the 49th Annual Paris Air Show, the largest trade show dedicated to aviation and the space industry for over a century. F-16 WWR (World Wide Review) Sept. 12-16 Ogden, Utah Geotest looks forward to participation in this annual event, which provides opportunities for Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers, supporting vendors, TCG staff, U.S. Department of Defense employees and U.S. government organizations. It is a great opportunity to discuss items of common interest, to obtain and exchange technical knowledge for sustainment and to receive information about new or improved technologies important to the worldwide operation of F-16 aircraft and the various weapon systems represented today. AATC Weapons and Tactics Conference Sept. 12-16 Tucson, Arizona Registration for this conference opens June 1. Stay tuned for more information. Autotestcon 2011 Sept. 12-15 Baltimore, Maryland Join Geotest at Booth 629 for this year's conference, "Transforming Maintenance Through Advanced Test, Diagnosis and Prognosis." The conference's technical program will focus on the transformations happening right now in the way U.S. Department of Defense and industry perform maintenance. In addition, attendees will have the opportunity to preview many new products from a wide variety of exhibitors and to meet with senior military and aerospace leaders to discuss their future needs and expectations. NDIA Air Armament Symposium Oct. 3-6 Ft. Walton Beach, Florida Geotest joins industry experts for a series of seminars on emerging technology and the future of air armament. productronica Nov. 15-18 New Munich Trade Fair Centre, Germany The world's leading trade fair for electronics production, productronica is the largest exhibition of its kind, covering the entire process chain in electronics manufacturing. Its diverse range of exhibitors and visitors creates an exceptional gathering of market leaders and newcomers alike. In addition, visitors can take advantage of productronica university sessions that cover technologies that set new standards in the electronics production industry. For a list of these and other future events visit the events page on the Geotest website.

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MXI-Express BIOS Compatibility

When using the National Instruments (NI) MXI Express interface (PCIe or ExpressCard) with a PXI or PXIe chassis, you may encounter problems with recognizing PXI/PXIe devices installed in the chassis (code 12 or 31 in Device Manager), with your computer locking up at boot, or with Windows crashes (blue screen). This is caused by the controller's (either a desktop or laptop) inability to enumerate these devices and allocate the appropriate resources through the MXI Express interface. The following figure shows an example of the code 12 error in Device Manager.

Installing the NI BIOS Compatibility software and configuring your PCIe MXI Express card for compatibility mode will force the BIOS not to allocate resources upon bootup. Resource allocation is done strictly through software. Verify that your MXI Express PCIe board is supported in BIOS compatibility mode. Note that only the newer board revisions are capable of this. You can find a list of the supported part and revision values at Support Boards To resolve the issue, follow these steps:

Download and install the NI BIOS Compatibility software for Windows XP/Vista available at NI Compatibility Download.

Once the software has been installed, shut down the computer and chassis.

Physically set the MXI PCIe card to compatibilty mode by setting the correct jumper. You can find instructions on how to switch your MXI PCIe card to compatibility mode at Switching MXIe Modes.

Note that the laptop ExpressCard does not have any physical jumpers. Instead, it is switched through software control as per the instructions in the above link.

Start the chassis first, and then the computer. Any PXI/PXIe devices should now be found by Windows without errors.

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Test Connections - May 2011

FPGA-Based Instrumentation: Performance and Flexibility for Test Solutions

Satellite Manufacturer Uses PXI-Based Interface Simulators for Design Verification

Extend the Functionality of Geotest's GX3500 FlexDIO FPGA Product

Newsworthy Happenings

FPGA-Based Instrumentation: Performance and Flexibility for Test Solutions

Satellite Manufacturer Uses PXI-Based Interface Simulators for Design Verification

Extend the Functionality of Geotest's GX3500 FlexDIO FPGA Product

Newsworthy Happenings

MXI-Express BIOS Compatibility

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About Marvin Test Solutions

Contact Us

Aircraft

Weapons Systems

Maintenance Levels

GENASYS

GENASYS Benchtop

GENASYS Semi

GENASYS

GENASYS Benchtop

Commercial

Military

GENASYS Rugged

Test Connections - May 2011

FPGA-Based Instrumentation: Performance and Flexibility for Test Solutions

Satellite Manufacturer Uses PXI-Based Interface Simulators for Design Verification

Extend the Functionality of Geotest's GX3500 FlexDIO FPGA Product

Newsworthy Happenings

FPGA-Based Instrumentation: Performance and Flexibility for Test Solutions

Satellite Manufacturer Uses PXI-Based Interface Simulators for Design Verification

Extend the Functionality of Geotest's GX3500 FlexDIO FPGA Product

Newsworthy Happenings

MXI-Express BIOS Compatibility

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