When it comes to testing expensive electronics, accuracy and safety are very important. Where testing takes place can impact both of these.
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A test bench is a lab bench designed specifically to test the functionality and soundness of products, usually electronics.
Because electronics are sensitive to environmental changes around them, a lab test bench must meet certain specifications to ensure the bench doesn't interfere with the testing itself and promotes ease of use for the tester technician.
Having the right lab test bench design can ensure technician safety, create a productive workplace and improve the accuracy of this important work. If it&#;s time to replace your worn-out or outdated lab test bench, here&#;s how to design the best one for your workspace.
Ensure ESD Protection
Because lab test benches are often used during the testing of electronics, the bench should offer ESD protection. ESD (electro-static discharge) protection guards sensitive electronic components against static.
When combined with ESD workwear, special handling techniques, ESD chairs and other safeguards, a lab test bench with ESD protections in place ensures electricity doesn't interfere with testing, or worse, cause memory or corruption failures.
In extreme situations, discharges can ignite flammable liquids and vapors. They can also attract unwanted particles from around the room, which can pose a significant problem for labs with cleanliness requirements.
ESD laminate surfaces are by far your best way to design a lab bench that doesn't promote static. As a bonus, ESD laminate is also resistant to heat and solvents. So if you're worried about how they hold up to soldering and harsh cleaning, the answer is very well.
ESD laminate will cost more than standard laminate and other countertop surfaces. Expect to pay about 15% to 30% more for an ESD product over a non-ESD product. However, the extra cost may be necessary to preserve the integrity of your lab.
Storage For Tools
Hunting for tools can be a massive productivity killer. The best lab test benches are designed with the user in mind. They have room for tools large and small, from oscilloscopes to multimeters, soldering irons, wire cutters, voltmeters, ohmmeters and ammeters.
An excellent lab bench will also have plenty of organizational options as well, ensuring that it is easy to stay focused and tools are within reach.
One of the biggest mistakes lab managers make when choosing lab benches is overlooking sufficient storage space. They either underestimate the room needed for testing tools or create shared tool cabinets. This never works out well when you have multiple techs always needing the same equipment.
Don't skimp on this critical design feature. Storage generally includes a combination of:
- Open shelving
- Closable cabinets
- Power supply strips
- Ability to achieve good lighting from every angle
- Drawers
- Pegboards for awkwardly-shaped tools
- Keyboard trays
- Bin rails for sorting components
Every tester will have their own "best way" to organize their testing station to maximize productivity. These types of storage features set them up for success.
Utility Options And Access To Power Supply
For a lab test bench, you&#;ll want to make sure you have utility options available to you. Some common features include utility ductways for data and LED lighting that provides the needed illumination when working with electronics.
Also, someone using a lab test bench may need a source of DC power nearby so that they can test circuits under a variety of conditions.
Wonder why these kinds of details are important? Let's take a closer look at the power supply setup.
When you place a lab test bench directly over the outlet, then run the cord up through the hole in the lab bench, you prevent tripping hazards and fire risk. Make-shift outlet solutions are never a good idea with expensive electronics and test equipment involved.
Similarly, if the tester has to plug/unplug different tools throughout the test process, you want a lab bench with a powerstrip on the top-back or side. This way, they don't have to crawl up under the bench to establish or cut power &#; wasting time and putting them at risk of injury.
Ergonomic Design
Ergonomics is the science of creating an environment that promotes employee productivity on an individual level. When a work environment promotes comfort, reduces strain, encourages natural movement and shows that employers care about employee wellness, people are more productive.
An ergonomic workstation:
- Lessens muscle fatigue
- Reduces repetitive actions that lead to musculoskeletal injuries like carpal tunnel, rotator cuff inflammation, tendonitis, or tennis elbow
- Promotes a safe and supportive work environment
- Reduces eye strain
- Reduces adjustment time (e.g., chairs, trays, lighting, and other moving parts don't have to be constantly manipulated for use and comfort. If they are adjustable, adjustment is fast and easy.)
- Encourages an easy shift between sitting and standing
Employers both have the responsibility and power of prevention when it comes to work-related injuries. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 30% of worker injuries and illnesses are musculoskeletal disorders. These numbers have been on the decline over the past 10 years thanks to increased ergonomics awareness.
The Best Lab Test Bench Design Starts With You
An ergonomically-friendly lab bench is versatile. It allows each worker to find his or her own best working positions rather than forcing an uncomfortable cookie-cutter layout for everyone.
The best lab benches also protect technicians and costly electronics. They provide a variety of customizable storage solutions to allow testers autonomy when it comes to the best setup for them.
Your bench and other lab furniture should be ergonomically-friendly and promote comfort, productivity and wellness. It should be versatile enough that testers of all heights, sizes, abilities and sit-stand preferences can use it effortlessly.
The best lab bench manufacturers will accommodate your specifications without holding up your project. They'll be there to answer any questions you have, so you feel confident about your lab bench material, cost, features and protection choices.
When designing a digital system, verifying its functionality is a crucial step. This involves simulating the design under different scenarios and ensuring it behaves as expected. At the core of this task is the test environment, with the testbench playing an important role in overseeing the entire verification process.. A well-designed test environment will lead to efficient, reliable, and maintainable verification, ensuring the final design is robust and functions correctly. This article will explore the essential parts of the test environment, explain the importance of organising the testbench properly, and describe the attributes of good and bad testbenches. It will also explore some advanced techniques to enhance the testbench and create a complete test environment.
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Key Components of the Test Environment
The test environment consists of several components:
1. Device Under Test (DUT): this is the design being verified.
2. Testbench Entity: the environment in which the DUT is tested.
3. Test Sequencer: generates sequences of stimuli to be applied to the DUT.
4. Verification IPs (VIPs): IP blocks used for verifying standard interfaces.
5. VHDL Verification Components (VVCs): the components used to control the test sequencer and the BFMs.
6. Scoreboard: a checker that verifies the output of the DUT.
7. DUT Model: a behavioral model used to generate the expected output of the DUT.
8. Checkers: components used to verify specific characteristics of the DUT.
9. Monitors: components that observe the DUT&#;s activity.
10. Clock, Reset, and Stimuli Generators: these are components that generate the clock, reset, and other stimuli signals for the DUT.
The Importance of Testbench Organization
Organising the testbench is a vital part of the verification process. A well-organised testbench ensures the verification process is efficient, effective, and maintainable, and that it is easy to understand, modify, and extend as the design evolves. To achieve this, it is recommended to break down the testbench into distinct modules or components, each serving a specific purpose, like stimulus generation, response checking, and debugging. By integrating vital features like self-checking mechanisms, robust architecture and structure, ease of modification, maintainability, extendability, debuggability, and reusability, you can create a testbench that streamlines the verification process and delivers reliable results.
The bad, the Good, and the Better
Bad Testbench
A poorly designed testbench performs all the pin-wiggling in the test sequencer, lacks self-checking capabilities, has minimal or no logging, and exhibits poor structure and readability. This makes it challenging to modify, maintain, and extend, making it time-consuming to correct issues arising during simulation. Identifying the root cause of errors and debugging becomes more difficult, and this type of testbench lacks the necessary features that ensure its reliability and reusability in future projects.
Bad testbench
Good Testbench
A good testbench hides all the pin-wiggles in Bus Functional Models (BFMs) defined in packages accessible in the testbench. This makes the test sequencer cleaner and easier to read, allowing for greater flexibility and extendability. Adding logging, alert handling, and self-checking capabilities further improves the testbench and gives it many of the key features required to be considered good.
Good testbench
Better Testbench
While BFMs are essential components of a testbench, their blocking nature limits the test sequencer to executing only one BFM call at a time, leading to reduced efficiency. To overcome this limitation, VHDL Verification Components (VVCs) can be added to the testbench. VVCs allow the test sequencer to control the BFMs and execute multiple tasks simultaneously without waiting for the BFMs to finish. This improves the flexibility of the testbench and enhances functions like logging, checkers, and alerts, leading to improved self-checking capabilities and debuggability. With the addition of VVCs, the testbench achieves more efficient simulations and produces higher-quality verification results.
Better testbench
Creating a Complete Verification Environment
A complete and robust verification environment incorporates a testbench, a test sequencer, and a test-harness. The test-harness typically includes several VHDL Verification Components (VVCs) to drive interfaces and clocks, and it instantiates the Device Under Test (DUT). The DUT model adds the expected DUT output to a scoreboard, while checkers verify the DUT's power-up state and ensure it meets required timing specifications. Monitors track transaction activity and ensure that the DUT's responses are valid.
Complete verification environment
The testbench and test sequencer control the VVCs, generating stimuli, applying them to the DUT, and monitoring its response. The VVCs generate transactions on the DUT interface, while the DUT model responds with output compared to the expected output in the scoreboard. If there is a mismatch, the scoreboard reports an error. Transactors convert the DUT's transaction requests and responses into the external bus's protocol, interfacing the DUT with its external peripherals or buses.
Conclusion
Creating an efficient, reliable, and maintainable test environment is crucial for verifying the functionality of a digital design. A well-organised testbench that incorporating the show key attributes is central to this task. By hiding pin-wiggles in BFMs, adding self-checking capabilities, and using VVCs to improve efficiency, a testbench can be designed that will save time, reduce errors, and ensure reliable simulation results.
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