1998 Editors' Roundup:

Test and measurement and computer boards

The past year produced many stellar test and measurement and computer board offerings. Oscilloscopes, large test systems, and meters figured highly in 1998 with scopes taking center stage. Scope designs ranged from high-end precision waveform analyzers to low-cost handheld DSOs. Computer boards featured increased functionality, decreased size, and lower cost.

Tektronix (Beaverton, OR) included application-specific measurement capabilities with its TDS 700C scopes via Java software (see Electronic Products , May 1998, p. 28). The TDSDDM1 application provides specific measurement capabilities for the disk drive industry; TDSPWR1 is for designers concerned with power consumption; and TDSPRT1 allows users to print multiple screens of waveform acquisitions.

The LC564A DSO from LeCroy (Chestnut Ridge, NY) is capable of triggering on glitches as low as 600 ps (see Electronic Products , July 1998, p. 54). The scope features four input channels, a 1-GHz bandwidth, a 2-Gsample/s sampling rate, and record lengths of 100 Kbytes on four channels or 250 Kbytes on one or two channels.

Extech Instruments (Waltham, MA) introduced the Model 381270 MultiScope, a true-rms full-function DMM with a built-in dc to 100-kHz DSO that costs $299 (see Electronic Products , July 1998, p. 94). It can store and recall up to 15 waveforms as well as download to a PC via its RS-232 port.

The OsziFox single-channel DSO, distributed by Saelig (Victor, NY), comes in a pen-style housing the size of an average logic probe (see Electronic Products , Aug. 1998, p. 74).

OsziFox single-channel DSO

Features include a sampling rate of up to 20 Msamples/s, 6-bit resolution, 128 bytes of internal memory, and an on-board DB-9 interface. The unit includes software and costs $129.

DMMs continued to provide more and extended functions. In addition to 13 standard DMM functions, the Model 2015 THD multimeter by Keithley Instruments (Cleveland, OH) can also measure THD, THD + N, SINAD, and individual harmonic magnitude (see Electronic Products , July 1998, p. 46).

Larger test systems also made an impression this past year. Hewlett-Packard (Palo Alto, CA) addressed future communication standards with the introduction of its HP ADSL asynchronous digital subscriber line modem test solution (see Electronic Products , Feb. 1998, p. 24) and the HP TS-5500 open-standards-based VXI test system for CDMA and GSM equipment (see Electronic Products , April 1998, p. 148).

In the realm of computer boards and peripherals, 1998 saw some unique products. The PCM-Audio-DLX, from WinSystems (Arlington, TX), was introduced as the first full-duplex PC/104 audio board (see Electronic Products , June 1998, p. 98). The module is both AdLib and SoundBlaster Pro compatible, supports 16-bit stereo audio, and operates at sample rates of up to 44.1 kHz.

The IMAQ PCI-1424 DAQ board from National Instruments (Austin, TX) is capable of acquiring high-resolution images from digital area and line scan cameras at rates of up to 200 Mbytes/s (see Electronic Products , Sept. 1998, p. 57). Features include an expandable memory from 8 to 72 Mbytes, and transfer rates in excess of 100 Mbytes/s.

The Com.plete PC Card from GlobeWave (Rochelle Park, NJ) is an integrated PCMCIA Type III card that contains a cellphone, modem, and fax (see Electronic Products , Dec. 1997, p. 72). It makes a portable PC completely wireless and does not require a second PC card or need to be plugged into a cellular phone.

The NetDisplay PC from ZF Microsystems (Palo Alto, CA) combines the company's credit-card-sized 386- or 486-compatible OEM-module single-component computers with an 8.2- or 12.1-in. touchscreen LCD for under $500 (see Electronic Products , Oct. 1998, p. 95). The subassembly includes one parallel port, two serial ports, an Ethernet port, and an AT-compatible keyboard port.