Aeroflex's Synthetic Microwave Test Systems Now Available with National Instruments' NI TestStand Option

Business Wire, Sept 20, 2004

SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- Addition of Industry-Standard Test Executive Speeds up Test Sequencing for the Most Advanced Microwave Testing Applications

Aeroflex Incorporated (Nasdaq: ARXX) today announced it has integrated National Instruments' NI TestStand(TM) Development System into its high-performance synthetic microwave test systems. NI TestStand is a test management environment that provides a standard test sequencing capability for a variety of test applications, enabling Aeroflex customers to develop their own test sequences using an industry standard platform. It is now available as an option for the Aeroflex TRM 1000C and the STI 1000C synthetic broadband microwave test systems. The TRM synthetic test system is used for testing of high-performance broadband microwave components, subsystems and transmit/receive (TR) modules used in applications such as base stations, phased-array radar, communications systems and electronic warfare. The STI system is the most advanced system available for testing of satellite payloads.

"The addition of NI TestStand to the TRM and STI synthetic test systems is a natural fit that takes advantage of the open and flexible measurement architecture of our products. The additional capability provides customers with another method to access the wide variety of modular software products and a powerful measurement suite within the Aeroflex synthetic platform for advanced microwave test applications. They will also realize the benefits of standardizing test sequencing on an industry-standard product like NI TestStand," said Mark Jurovich, general manager, Aeroflex systems division, Powell, Ohio.

About the TRM 1000C and the STI 1000C synthetic test systems

The NI TestStand option will be available first on the TRM 1000C and the STI 1000C test systems. Both the TRM 1000C and the STI 1000C can be used either as standalone instruments or controlled by an external network as part of an enterprise-wide factory automation solution. These systems are designed to dramatically improve test times and reduce measurement errors introduced by either the operator or the test hardware. Test throughput delivered by these systems exceeds that achieved by a traditional rack and stack system by up to an order of magnitude, with measurement accuracy rivaling that of a vector network analyzer.

The TRM 1000C and the STI 1000C are capable of making vector and scalar measurements under either continuous wave (CW), pulsed or modulated signal conditions with programmatic access to all the key stimulus and measurement parameters. A complete library of microwave tests is offered and customers may easily develop new or unique tests using a high-level test scripting language. Error-corrected s-parameters, spectral measurements, noise measurements, modulation/demodulation measurements are all available.

The standard TRM 1000C is capable of microwave stimulus and measurement to 26.5 GHz, up to 20 dBm device under test (DUT) input and from -90 to 30 dBm DUT output levels. Standard frequency and power extension options are available to 36 GHz and 50 dBm power level stimulus.

The standard STI 1000C is capable of microwave stimulus and measurement to 32 GHz, up to 10 dBm DUT input and from -80 to 30 dBm DUT output levels. Standard frequency and power extension options are available to 36 GHz and 50 dBm power level stimulus. A unique remote calibration unit provision enables very precise and accurate measurements even at the end of very long cabling that is usually required for testing satellite payloads in remote environmental chambers.

Aeroflex will provide custom features including development of NI TestStand-sequences for customers for both the TRM and STI systems on a paid, non-recurring engineering (NRE) basis. Both standard and custom DUT port matrices are available, enabling literally hundreds of input and output test ports.

About Aeroflex Synthetic Systems

Aeroflex has more than 10 years' experience in the design and development of synthetic test systems that provide multi-function test capabilities encompassing broadband network analysis, spectral analysis, noise measurement and modulation/demodulation performance characterization. Synthetic test systems solve many of the problems associated with rack-and-stack test stands. Synthetic test systems provide superior test speeds for increased throughput, access to the parameters of measurement algorithms, fully integrated National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) traceable calibration, in-situ calibration and verification of the system even with the DUT connected, and a complete library of important microwave test algorithms.

Using broadband digital-analog converter (DAC)/up-converter technology on the stimulus side and broadband down-converter/analog-digital converter (ADC) technology on the measurement side, along with fast, real-time digital signal processing (DSP), Aeroflex synthetic test systems offer the ultimate test implementation flexibility as well as stability, repeatability and reliability. This is achieved only when calibration and verification are designed-in tightly integrated components of the system architecture. Throughput from a synthetic test platform approach often yields a 10x advantage in test throughput over rack-and-stack test systems. In addition, synthetic test systems reduce system integration time and lower the total cost of test.