Evaluation Engineering - 17

Keysight Technologies M9164A, M9164B, and
M9164C PXI Express switch matrices.

"When customers test base-station or satellite antennas,
they need to account for every imaginable operating
condition. They can't troubleshoot an antenna in space."
- Matt Campbell, product marketing engineer, Keysight
web-based graphical user interface for
switch system control," he said, adding
that the EX7000 family supports Windows
or Linux operating systems; IVI-C, IVICOM, and LabVIEW drivers provide
support for LabView, LabWindows/CVI,
Microsoft.NET, and other software-development environments.
"Our EX7000 LXI systems enable users
to define switch-closure configurations
that cannot be enabled to avoid creating
switch paths that can cause damage to
the system or to the DUT," Gibson said.
"These excluded configurations provide
added reliability and safety for the switch
systems."
EX7000 systems can be fully customized, Gibson said, adding, "When
required, systems can be built with
matched phase lines. Also, when semirigid or rigid cables are required, cable
lengths and bend radii are documented.
Thus, systems can be easily duplicated."
He said the company's RF/microwave

switching systems serve test applications
primarily in the military/aerospace and
wireless communication infrastructure
markets.
For its part, Rohde & Schwarz offers
the R&S OSP Open Switch and Control
Platform. Gert Heuer, product manager
for the platform, described it as a modular
solution for RF switch and control tasks
up to 67 GHz. "The modular R&S OSP
product family can be used to perform
RF switch and control tasks quickly and
easily," he said. "The new R&S OSP generation comes with an extended range
of modules, allowing an even wider variety of RF wiring configurations to be
implemented."
Heuer said the R&S OSP's modular design enables users to quickly and easily
set up test and measurement configurations for applications in production, test
labs, and development. Features include
an external hardware trigger, a web GUI,
an optional touch screen, extension

units, different housing configurations
(2HU, 3HU), and the ability to install RF
modules on front and rear side of the 19in. unit. The OSP is flexible, he said, and
supports higher test speeds for lower test
cycle times.
"The ability to implement complex wiring configurations with a single switch
and control platform is an essential prerequisite for reliable and reproducible
measurements that can be automated
to enable cost-efficient test sequences,"
Heuer said, adding that the OSP finds use
in RF-conformance, OTA, RSE, EMC, antenna, and radar-module test systems.

Switching architectures
PXI and LXI are common platforms for
switching systems. "The PXI platform
has the advantage of small size, modularity, and the fast PXI bus," said Gibson
at VTI Instruments. "The LXI platform
offers more flexibility for switch system
configurations, higher bandwidth, and
easier implementation of larger switch
systems."
Keysight also offers LXI and PXI
products, with the latter including the
M9164A, M9164B, and M9164C PXI
Express switch matrices, which operate
to 6.5 GHz, 9 GHz, and 18 GHz, respectively. "At first glance, PXI and LXI seem
similar-modular systems with a variety
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Evaluation Engineering

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