Beyond Virtual Instruments

Virtual instruments, in which software determines the measurement functions performed by test-dedicated hardware modules, have become a common reality today. Relying heavily on the capability of FPGAs, the test hardware is extremely flexible, allowing the user to build just the instrument they want for their work. The best example of this type of instrument is the NI PXIe-5644R RF vector signal transceiver (VST) from National Instruments (www.ni.com).

What’s key in virtual instruments is having software that defines and controls test functions performed by hardware dedicated to testing. If the hardware used is not test specific but intended for other purposes, it can be said that the software embeds instrument functionality into the hardware, or that the test gear is an “embedded instrument.”

In the last few years, many companies have been pursing development of this approach. For example, Dave MacEmon, Marketing Manager, Silicon Test Solutions at Mentor Graphics discussed the use of embedded test to reduce the need for external test hardware in the July 2011 issue of Electronic Products , in the article Using embedded test for SerDes transceivers ( www2.electronicproducts.com/Using_embedded_test_for_SerDes_transceivers-article-farc_mentor_jul2011-html.aspx).

Test instrumentation powerhouse Tektronix has been working with chip makers for a while on embedded test and last year acquired Veridae Systems ( www2.electronicproducts.com/Tektronix_Acquires_Veridae_Systems_Inc-article-newsrc01_06_jul2011-html.aspx), which created Certus software for embedded test. Last month, Tektronix unveiled Certus 2.0, a suite of software and RTL-based embedded instruments, which the company says will fundamentally changes the ASIC prototyping flow, enabling full RTL-level visibility and making FPGA internal visibility a feature of the prototyping platform. (For more on Certus, visit www.tek.com/embedded-instrumentation/certus-asic-prototype-validation-solution.)

Embedded instruments have the potential to change the entire test industry in a host of way, from making tool delivery Web based to including test instrumentation in every electronic product produced. It’s a trend that bears close watching.