Datasheet

INCREASING COMPLEXITY DEMANDS
MEASUREMENT SIMPLICITY
“We are able to stay successful in this
business because we can move quickly.
It’s not uncommon for us to have just three
months to invent a new product and end
up with something that is reliable, rugged
and durable in end-user packaging,”
Smith relates. “We have the classic small
business problem. It’s difficult to juggle
everything and saving time whenever
possible is crucial. I really can’t afford to
spend a lot of time troubleshooting.”
But, in fact, troubleshooting prior to
bringing in the Tektronix solution consumed
many hours and days. The problem
stemmed in part from Smith’s older test
equipment: a couple of 10-year-old
oscilloscopes and a simple test device for
looking at DMX data. When it came time
to determine the source of the problems,
Smith often found himself resorting to
time consuming trial and error. As designs
have gotten more complex with advancing
technology and customer needs, elusive
errors can occur anywhere across wireless
devices, in receivers or transmitters and
they can be hardware or software related.
Fortunately, the test and measurement
experts at Tektronix have kept pace with
these trends and offer solutions such as
the MSO2000 Mixed Signal Oscilloscope
Series, which delivers advanced debug
features and precision at an affordable
price point. The MSO2024 he selected
provides 16 digital channels and four
analog channels for accurate signal capture
and deep analysis.
PULLING THE TRIGGER
For Smith’s needs, the DPO2EMBD serial
triggering and analysis application module
for automated decoding and triggering on
SPI buses and the DPO2COMP application
module that enables the same for RS-232
were game changers. The trigger capability
allows him to isolate particular bus traffic
of interest, while the decoding capability
lets him instantly see the content of every
message transmitted over the bus in
an acquisition.
“In the past I might have spent hours
getting a simple scope appropriately set
up, then spent more time finding ways to
force a particular event to trigger the scope
at the right time,” Smith says. “All that time
is now replaced by a few short minutes
capturing and reviewing an extended
sample of real-world data, both visually and
numerically. Now, an anomaly can literally
jump right out at me, and be verifiably fixed
moments later.”
Another important factor was intuitive
menus and simple operation, which meant
that Smith could quickly get to work
solving real problems.
“When the scope arrived, I immediately
opened the box and went to work. I didn’t
even touch the manual. Within minutes
I had lines named and labeled,” Smith
says. “I had a problem with sporadic,
intermittent package loss on a product
under development. So I plugged in the
new scope to see what was going on and
saw that the first two bytes on the screen
were not reflected correctly in the software,
showing that it absolutely was a software
problem. I could have gone for days
unwilling to believe it was my software…
I quickly found a mistake in the firmware.”
Smith adds that he was so excited by
this addition to his bench that he “took a
picture of the scope and emailed it to my
technical associates. I couldn’t have had a
better first day with a tool.”
Since then, Smith has found the Tektronix
oscilloscope to be a valuable diagnostic
and development resource. In contrast
to the older oscilloscopes, the MSO2024
is much easier to use and can capture
a very long segment of data from many
input samples. The instrument’s Wave
Inspector® controls allow Smith to zoom
in on this data after the capture is taken for
detailed and precise analysis.
For RC4, the Tektronix measurement
solution not only dramatically improves
current bench strength, but will also enable
the firm to move forward as stage and
entertainment lighting technology evolves
past the older DMX protocol to embrace
technologies such as powerline-based
controls and more sophisticated protocols.
The future looks bright indeed.
–
For Further Information
Tektronix maintains a comprehensive, constantly expanding
collection of application notes, technical briefs and other
resources to help engineers working on the cutting edge of
technology. Please visit www.tektronix.com
Copyright © 2016, Tektronix. All rights reserved. Tektronix
products are covered by U.S. and foreign patents, issued and
pending. Information in this publication supersedes that in all
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01/16 SMD/KI 3GW-24465-1
“When the scope
arrived, I immediately
opened the box and
went to work. I didn’t
even touch the manual.
Within minutes I had
lines named and
labeled.”
James Smith
President and Product Designer, 4RC
A wider view of the Cirque du Soliel Corteo
stage shows the clean lines achieved by
avoiding electrical wiring, while still providing
a sophisticated light show. Traditional wired
control is used for conventional lighting on
trusses overhead and elsewhere. Wireless
lighting on the mobile pieces seamlessly
integrate into the overall design.
© 2007 Fuji Television
The wireless lighting control in numerous
productions by Opera Australia enables
extremely fast scene changes. The elimination
of trailing cables allows pieces to fly out of
scene in any direction at any time. In today’s
theatre world, audiences seek an experience
rivaling the fast edits and point-of-view changes
of film and video. Wireless is one of the most
powerful facilitators to meet this demand.
Photo is a scene from The Tales of Hoffmann. Photo
courtesy of Opera Australia.