FIELD

The present invention relates to systems and methods for testing products, and more particularly, embodiments concern a testing system for evaluating the performance of electrical/electronic products under dynamic operating conditions, including a data acquisition and analysis system configured to perform in situ data acquisition and real-time data analysis.

BACKGROUND

It is often desirable to measure and analyze the performance of electrical/electronic products. Prior art solutions include Fluke Calibration Systems such as Super DAQ and DAQ-STAQ which record performance data without any analysis processes and with only pre-defined stimulus values. The data collected from such systems require post-processing software to perform the analysis, and the systems cannot supply multiple event-based and real-time stimuli. In addition to having limited capabilities, these systems are undesirably large. Other prior art systems include the TIDA-00440 board from Texas Instruments which can measure leakage current by applying five hundred volts for only two terminals. However, this board cannot be used to measure the leakage current of products with multiple resistive channels and it cannot be combined with other data acquisition systems.

This background discussion is intended to provide information related to the present invention which is not necessarily prior art.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present invention address the above-described and other problems and limitations in the prior art by providing an improved testing system for evaluating the performance of electrical/electronic components, circuits, systems, or other products under dynamic operating conditions, including a data acquisition and analysis system configured to perform in situ data acquisition and real-time data analysis. In some implementations, the data acquisition and analysis system may control the dynamic testing conditions and/or may also be subject to the dynamic operating conditions.

In a first embodiment, a data acquisition and analysis system is provided for improving the testing of a product unit, including performing in situ acquisition of data for the product unit, while a dynamic testing component applies a stimulus to the product unit, and real-time analysis of the data. The data acquisition and analysis system may include a processor component, a power supply, a circuit resistance/interface component, an insulation resistance component and a single enclosure. The processor component may be configured to control in real-time the in situ acquisition of the data, to perform in real-time the in-situ acquisition of the data, and to perform the real-time analysis of the data. The power supply may include a high current/voltage subcomponent and a low current/voltage subcomponent. The circuit resistance/interface component may be electrically connected to the processor component and the power supply and configured to acquire first data from the product unit, including first data regarding an electrical resistance for the product unit, while the stimulus is applied to the product unit, and to communicate the first data to the processor component for the real-time analysis. The insulation resistance component may be electrically connected to the processor component and the power supply and configured to acquire second data from the product unit, including second data regarding an electrical insulation integrity for the product unit, while the stimulus is applied to the product unit, and to communicate the second data to the processor component for the real-time analysis. The single enclosure may physically enclose the processor component, the power supply, the circuit resistance/interface component, and the insulation resistance component.

Various implementations of the first embodiment may include any one or more of the following features. The dynamic testing component may be a centrifuge configured to apply a centrifugal force to the product unit. The stimulus may also be applied to the data acquisition and analysis system. The processor component may be a system-on-chip. The processor component may be further configured to control the dynamic testing component, including varying in real-time the stimulus applied to the product unit. The processor component may include multiple input channels configured to receive in real-time the data. The high current/voltage subcomponent of the power supply may be configured to supply up to five hundred volts, and the data acquisition and analysis system may be further configured to measure on multiple input channels a leakage current of the product unit. The data acquisition and analysis system may further include a transceiver configured to transmit and receive information into and out of the testing system via a communication network, including information for controlling the dynamic testing component and the data acquisition and analysis system.

In a second embodiment, a testing system is provided for improving the testing of a product unit, including performing in situ acquisition of data and real-time analysis of the data. The testing system may include a dynamic testing component and a data acquisition and analysis component. The dynamic testing component may be configured to apply a stimulus to the product unit. The data acquisition and analysis system may be configured to perform the in situ acquisition of the data and the real-time analysis of the data, and may include a system-on-chip component, a power supply, a circuit resistance/interface component, an insulation component, and a single enclosure. The system-on-chip component may be configured to control in real-time the in situ acquisition of the data, to perform in real-time the in-situ acquisition of the data, and to perform the real-time analysis of the data. The power supply may include a high current/voltage subcomponent and a low current/voltage subcomponent. The circuit resistance/interface component may be electrically connected to the system-on-chip component and the power supply and configured to acquire first data from the product unit, including first data regarding an electrical resistance for the product unit, while the stimulus is applied to the product unit, and to communicate the first data to the system-on-chip component for the real-time analysis. The insulation resistance component may be electrically connected to the system-on-chip component and the power supply and configured to acquire second data from the product unit, including second data regarding an electrical insulation integrity for the product unit, while the stimulus is applied to the product unit, and to communicate the second data to the system-on-chip component for the real-time analysis. The single enclosure may physically enclose the system-on-chip component, the power supply, the circuit resistance/interface component, and the insulation resistance component.

Various implementations of the second embodiment may include any one or more of the following features. The dynamic testing component may be a centrifuge configured to apply a centrifugal force to the product unit. The stimulus may also be applied to the data acquisition and analysis system. The system-on-chip component may be further configured to control the dynamic testing component, including varying in real-time the stimulus applied to the product unit. The system-on-chip component may include multiple input channels configured to receive in real-time the data. The high current/voltage subcomponent of the power supply may be configured to supply up to five hundred volts, and the data acquisition and analysis system may be further configured to measure on multiple input channels a leakage current of the product unit. The testing system may further include a transceiver configured to transmit and receive information into and out of the testing system via a communication network, including information for controlling the dynamic testing component and the data acquisition and analysis system.

This summary is not intended to identify essential features of the present invention, and is not intended to be used to limit the scope of the claims. These and other aspects of the present invention are described below in greater detail.

