Test Connections - April 2014

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April 2014 - NewsletterFocus OnSolution SpotlightProduct HighlightIn the News

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.

Solving Functional Test Obsolescence

Commercial and military aerospace users know the importance of keeping mission-critical electronics up to date, even in systems with life cycles measured in decades. Keeping legacy systems viable, updated, and functioning can be challenging, time-consuming, and expensive. But there is a better way. See how the GENASYS™ electronic functional test system solves functional test obsolescence, thanks to high-performance, flexible, and scalable system components contained in a footprint ideal for both factory and depot applications.

SNCF Railway Reduces Test Time by 60%

When France’s SNCF railway upgraded its Alstrom Bench Test Equipment (BTE) Functional Test Systems to Marvin Test Solutions’ GX7100 PXI platform, it saw up to 60% test time reduction in certain tests and improved test program performance/supportability, while still maintaining the systems’ existing user interface.

ATEasy 9.0 New Features

The newly released ATEasy 9.0 includes industry leading, new simulation tools that allows users to simulate one, many, or all of a system's hardware components. In addition, users can simulate software functions and UUT functionality / responses, providing a comprehensive test system / UUT simulation environment for TPS validation. With simulation capability, users are able to develop and verify test programs without needing valuable time on a tester or access to the UUT. The result is higher productivity, higher quality programs, faster deployment, and better test system utilization.

Newsworthy Happenings at Marvin Test Solutions

Trade publication news

Product updates

See us at upcoming industry conferences and trade events

Looking to generate test applications faster? Open-architecture-based ATEasy is the answer. Download your no-cost 30-day trial today! Download your 30 day FREE TRIAL!

In June of 2013, the United States Air Force awarded Marvin Test Solutions a $5.7 million contract for the PATS-70 flightline test set which supports the modernized A-10/C Thunderbolt ll. At the conclusion of the contract in May 2014, 85 test sets will have been delivered to the 309^th software maintenance group at Hill AFB.
Read on to learn more.

Read the blog post here.

Interested in knowing more about ATEasy 9.0’s simulation capabilities?Click here to learn more.

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Solving Functional Test Obsolescence

Electronic functional test equipment obsolescence is a challenge all commercial and aerospace users face when supporting mission-critical electronics that must last for decades. Unfortunately, the perception that upgrading or replacing systems is very expensive or difficult – or worse yet, sacrifices functionality – often keeps many users from updating their systems. The result is greater costs in the long run, when the outdated systems eventually experience down time, and replacement parts no longer support the original components.

Obsolescence Impacts Everyone
The problem of obsolescence reaches across multiple roles and phases of the test system. For example, test engineers know that while the legacy ATE test systems are obsolete, they possess unique high-performance test capabilities built up over time. In order to maintain this system knowledge, it’s important to migrate or update carefully and effectively.

Similarly, test department managers must find the most cost-effective equation for keeping their ATE test systems running, and because of the constant technology evolution within the electronics industry – many ATE test systems are no longer supported by OEMS. This poses a unique challenge to managers tasked with keeping their systems functional yet affordable.

The Solution to Obsolescence
The new GENASYS™ functional test system solves the problem of system obsolesce by offering a high-performance, flexible, and scalable solution, built on the industry-standard PXI architecture, in a footprint ideal for both factory and depot applications. GENASYS™ not only helps you convert and migrate your legacy tests, but it also keeps you prepared for future technology developments and requirements, thanks to its open, COTS-based architecture.

The GENASYS™ system includes:

A PXI-based, card modular industry standard architecture

Configurable subsystems employing commercial off the shelf (COTS) digital, analog, and switching software components

The high-performance digital subsystem supports vector rates up to 20 MHz, an integrated analog switching system supporting a hybrid pin system, and robust test program migration tools. Its field-proven PXI platform leverages high-performance and high-density FPGAs, integrated analog electronics, and digital functional test subsystems, all in a rugged, compact chassis.

Click here to read more about how GENASYS can solve functional test obsolescence.

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Upgrading to Save: Achieving a 60% Test Time Reduction in Railway Test Systems

France’s SNCF railway recently upgraded and converted its Alstom Bench Test Equipment (BTE) Functional Test Systems – originally deployed globally in the late 1990s with Marvin Test Solutions’ GTXI system, to Marvin Test Solutions’ GX7100 PXI platform. The result: more than 60% test time reduction for key LRU assemblies, increased forward compatibility thanks to the PXI framework, improved test system maintainability and preservation of the systems’ existing user interface. SNCF railway maintains a wide range of electronic assemblies that are part of the Alstom train sets it
operates. Besides SNCF, Alstom train set operators include Amtrak, New Jersey Transit, SEPTA, NYCT in North America as well as many other transit operators world-wide. These test sets, which are now 15+ years old, have reached end of life, requiring railway operators to look at replacement systems to continue servicing Alstom’s Advanced Generic Alstom Transport Electronics (AGATE) family of electronic control units. Marvin Test Solutions worked with Accelonix, an integrator in Paris, France, to upgrade the existing GTXI systems used in the original test systems, to the new MTS GX7100 PXI platform. The upgrade included conversion of legacy ATEasy test programs to the current ATEasy version. The resulting upgrades greatly improved test performance and maintainability. Key benefits included: Up to 80% test time reduction for some line replicable unit (LRU) tests Simple program conversion and retention of the existing user interface thanks to ATEasy’s backward compatibility Implementation of a modern test platform (PXI) architecture, providing a cost effective extension of the test system’s life cycle
Background The original Alstom BTE systems incorporated the GTXI platform with several analog modules, custom modules, and switching capabilities. These systems also included an AGATE chassis and user power supplies, as well as older systems with custom boards. SNCF wanted to upgrade two types of test systems that were supporting several different LRU assemblies. The upgrade required replacement of the GTXI chassis and modules, the system controller, and migration of the ATEasy-based testing procedure specification (TPS) to the current version of ATEasy.
Implementation The Alstom BTE system upgrade replaced the GTXI chassis and associated modules with an GX7100 3U/6U PXI chassis, configured with a complement of switching and analog instrumentation. The compact size of the GX7100BR chassis (only 4U high) allowed this PXI replacement subsystem to easily fit into the BTE rack space originally occupied by the GTXI chassis (7U high), and delivered an easy, direct upgrade/replacement for the GTXI platform. Conversion from the legacy GTXI hardware was straight forward since instrument capability and functionality mapped directly from the GTXI to the PXI platform, including the replacement of the custom Actem instrument cards. The test software for these systems uses Marvin Test Solutions’ ATEasy, an integrated test executive and test development software suite. A total of 21 ATEasy test programs that were originally developed by Alstom for various UUTs were migrated to ATEasy 8.0. And like all previous versions of ATEasy, ATEasy 8.0 is backward compatible with previous versions, which greatly simplified the task of TPS migration. Click here to read our technical brief about upgrading SNCF’s BTE systems to PXI. To learn more about how Marvin Test Solutions can help upgrade your Alstom BTE platform please contact us: BTEsupport@marvintest.com Learn more about ATEasy.

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ATEasy 9.0 New Features

The following list is a summary of new features that are available with ATEasy 9.0.

Comprehensive Hardware and Software Simulation
Users have the ability to develop, run, debug and analyze their applications on their desktop with partial or without any hardware ATEasy 9’s simulation capabilities. Any existing driver, system or program can be simulated and no source code changes are required to support the simulation capability.

Expanded Source Control Capabilities and Support for 3rd Party Providers
ATEasy users now have the option to integrate various 3rd party source control tools with ATEasy 9. ATEasy’s Source Control page allows users to interface to a source control system via a command line interface. Interfaces are provided for several standard source control providers including CVS, Subversion, Microsoft Team Foundation Server, Source Safe and any other SCC API source control providers. Additional Command Line Source Control functionality can be defined using the Options dialog. Predefined variables provide dynamic command line creation based on specific file properties, providing flexibility when interfacing to these tools. Additionally, Workspace file properties now contain a new source control folder definition – allowing files to be saved to a different location than the physical directory layout associated with project files, providing additional flexibility for managing the archiving and configuration management of test programs.

Side by Side Installation
With ATEasy 9, users can install an older version of ATEasy without having to uninstall their current version. You can keep your existing drivers and files resident on your PC and you can use both development environments and run-time environments concurrently. For compiled applications, the appropriate run time engine will be automatically selected.

Expanded Find and Replace Functionality
ATEasy’s capabilities now include Find All / Replace All windows as well as supporting Type, ID and Value search and replacement functionality.

Expanded Editing Capabilities
ATEasy’s editing features now include Copy, Paste, Replace, Delete and Drag & Drop of Multiple Objects within the Development Environment at the same time.

Expanded Unicode Support
ATEasy now supports unicode throughout the development environment and can be used with the Properties window and grid, the text/code editor, commands and form editors, and find and replace functions.

Automatic Variable Prefix and Type
Variable type can be automatically set when typing a variable name with a prefix. Changing a variable type can set the variable prefix as well.

Compatibility
ATEasy is compatible with 32/64 bit Windows operating systems including Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7 and 8.x and Windows Server 2003, 2008 and 2012. No special software or hardware is required beyond Windows requirements. ATEasy 9.0 is backward compatible with prior versions of ATEasy.

To read more about ATEasy 9.0 click here.

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In the News

Steve Sargeant, CEO of Marvin Test Solutions, was recently featured in EE Times’ “Profiles in Test.” In the interview, Steve - also a retired Major General in the US Air Force - discusses how he has seen mil/aero test evolve, where he sees it going in the future, his own career path, and advice for new engineers. Read the full EE Times article.

Steve Sargeant, 3^rd from the right

SmartCan Updates
We recently announced enhancements to our MTS-3060 SmartCan™, a universal O-level aircraft armament test set for legacy aircraft employing smart weapons. The SmartCan now offers support for simulation and test support for the AIM-120 missile. With the new SmartCan™ enhancements, maintainers now can test the full functionality of the AIM-120 interface by emulating the missile. Read the Press Release

Upcoming Events

Marvin Test Solutions will be exhibiting at the following events:

The PXI Show at National Electronics Week, April 8^th - 10^th, 2014
Birmingham, NEC, UK
The Marvin Test Solutions Booth #43
This three-day event is the UK’s only dedicated electronic event, and features four key events for industry sectors: design and test, components and power, production and EMS, and embedded and software. Mr. Victor Fernandes will demo GBATS, a preconfigured functional test platform, and Marvin Test Solutions' ATEasy Test Executive and Development Software.

Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit, May 4^th - 6^th, 2014
Nashville, TN
The Marvin Group Booth #3206
This Army Aviation Association of America - a sponsored two and a half day conference offers lectures, networking, and events featuring experts focused on solutions for warfighters. The Marvin Group will display the Apache Hellfire launcher along with the Aircraft and Hellfire supporting test equipment from Marvin Test Solutions. Major General Steve Sargeant, USAF (ret) and CEO, Mr. Michael Frey, Director of Business Development, and Mr. Loofie Gutterman, President, will be available to address your maintenance and sustainment test requirements from the flightline to the depot .

Space Symposium, May 19^th - 22^nd, 2014
Colorado Springs, CO
The Marvin Test Solutions Booth #1301
This year marks the 30^th Space Symposium, one of the nation’s premier global, commercial, civil and military space conference. Marvin Test Solutions will showcase the next generation in functional test. Please visit our booth to see GENASYS and GBATS, PXI-based high performance test systems. Mr. Mike Schraeder, National Sales Director, and Mr. Loofie Gutterman, President, will be at the conference to discuss your functional test needs.

Featured Articles

See Marvin Test Solutions' ad and article in Evaluation Engineering:

"Bench and Modular Instruments on the Radar", Evaluation Engineering, April 2014

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About Marvin Test Solutions

Marvin Test Solutions, a vertically-integrated aerospace test and measurement company, has created and delivered innovative, reliable test systems for factory, depot, intermediate, and flightline use since 1988. Our expertise delivering aerospace precision underpins our manufacturing solutions, enabling us to quickly meet customers’ requirements with high-performance products and custom turnkey systems, backed by excellent long-term customer support.

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Test Connections - April 2014

Solving Functional Test Obsolescence

SNCF Railway Reduces Test Time by 60%

ATEasy 9.0 New Features

Newsworthy Happenings at Marvin Test Solutions

Solving Functional Test Obsolescence

Upgrading to Save: Achieving a 60% Test Time Reduction in Railway Test Systems

ATEasy 9.0 New Features

In the News

Upcoming Events

Featured Articles

Enter message in space below

Product Lines

Resources

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 - April 2014

Solving Functional Test Obsolescence

SNCF Railway Reduces Test Time by 60%

ATEasy 9.0 New Features

Newsworthy Happenings at Marvin Test Solutions

Solving Functional Test Obsolescence

Upgrading to Save: Achieving a 60% Test Time Reduction in Railway Test Systems

ATEasy 9.0 New Features

In the News

Upcoming Events

Featured Articles

Select Your Country

Email this Page

Enter message in space below

Product Lines

Resources

About Marvin Test Solutions

Contact Us