Agilent 5991-2966EN Reducing Device-Failure Risk with a Black-Box Recorder - Application Note c20141107 [6] free download

File name 5991-2966EN Reducing Device-Failure Risk with a Black-Box Recorder - Application Note c20141107 [6].

Keysight Technologies Reducing Device-Failure Risk with a Black-Box Recorder Application Note Introduction Protecting against damage in test for aerospace/defense and automotive devices -- or any devices that are time consuming and costly to replace -- is essential to meeting delivery and budget objectives. When the risk of device failure is of signiicant concern, test planning should include strategies and equipment that can help you reduce the risk. Even after planning carefully, taking extensive precautions, and executing a test plan step by step, DUTs may still fail. DUTs may fail for a variety of reasons beyond DUT laws, among them human error, test equipment failure, and controller failure. When a failure occurs, you need to identify and understand the failure mechanism to avoid a repeat. Better still is to detect con- ditions that can lead to DUT failure and to act to prevent damage. The Keysight Technologies, Inc. N7908A black-box recorder (BBR) can provide the necessary functionality. As in commercial aviation, and increasingly in automobiles and other high-value equipment, a BBR can provide critical failure-mode insight and can play an important role in test strategy development aimed at reducing the risk of failure. You can gain insight about the operation and health of a DUT from examining the power source output and status data captured during a test cycle. The N7908A BBR is a user-installable accessory available for the Keysight Advanced Power System N6900 and N7900 Series DC power supplies. Keysight black-box recorder The Keysight BBR runs in the background to continuously log the power supply's measured param- eters and various other events. Logging starts automatically when the unit is turned on. Logging does not interfere with any source or measurement features of the power supply. It never stops, and data is preserved after a power cycle. Data logging can be performed every 10 ms or every 100 ms. At the 10-ms logging rate, you can log 24 hours of continuous data, and at the 100-ms rate, you can log 240 hours of data. Recorded measurements include average, minimum, and maximum voltage, current, and power. Logged events include system status bits that might affect sourcing, two user-deined status bits, front-panel keys pressed, SCPI command received, and trigger events. Examining and analyzing recorder data to understand DUT failures BBR data can help you analyze DUT failures by providing time-stamped records of events and measurements of voltage, current, and power levels, as well as power-supply status -- both leading up to the point of DUT or test-equipment failure and after the failure. When the BBR clock is synchronized with the test-system controller and events external to the p