Next Generation of Test Automation and Systems
Application Notes
Working to provide test solutions for the world’s leading public safety and Military Communication (MilCom) radio manufacturers and maintainers, we see one driving constant: a combination of evolution and revolution in the underlying technologies as well as expansion of radio standards (i.e. Analog and digital formats such as AM, FM, APCO P25, DMR, TETRA, WLAN, Bluetooth) and radio capabilities. For example, one of the hottest topics in the Land Mobile Radio (LMR) industry today is the use of private ong-Term Evolution (LTE). On February 22, 2012, the United States Congress created the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet), which allocated 108 MHz of spectrum in 700 MHz band to support the creation of a nationwide interoperable broadband network [1]. LTE technology enables very high-speed data communications that is not possible with current LMR technologies (APCO, DMR, TETRA…etc). LTE was designed to deliver high bandwidth mobile data which allows mobile devices to stream video or to transfer large amounts of data quickly.
While these advanced technologies are great news for public safety and MilCom personnel, they create many challenges for test engineers and radio manufacturers. Product technologies are more sophisticated and product development cycles are getting shorter. In the test and measurement industry, the number and complexity of product tests have increased significantly. Product testing is an essential part of the product qualification and manufacturing cycle. Design validation test and manufacturing functional test combined with six sigma analysis and results monitoring using Statistical Quality Control (SQC) are methods to monitor product and process health.