Test System Architect is a graphical toolset developed for signal path design and deployment by signal switching and simulation specialist, Pickering Interfaces.

The toolset is available free of charge and can be used to design, confiture and visualise test architectures, explained Kyle Voosen, product marketing manager at Pickering Interfaces.

Voosen said that the challenge faced by many customers today is not the hardware but engineering, integrating and assembling systems and part of this challenge is “making the signal path explicit and architecturally visible earlier in the design process, resulting in faster system development, fewer integration errors, and a more predictable deployment schedule.”

Pickering believes Test System Architect is the first dedicated, graphical design tool for signal switching and cabling systems. It integrates a system configurator tool, schematic design tool, product selector and migration tool with existing tools including cable design and microwave switch design. In particular, the migration tool streamlines the transition from obsolete VXI and GPIB systems to the latest, functionally equivalent PXI architectures.

Engineers can use the graphical toolset which is available online, to create detailed schematics, automate cable designs, and configure complex test systems, for example the appropriate PXI, PXIe hybrid, and LXI/USB chassis. It can also pinpoint the exact switching, simulation, and instrumentation modules for a specific application and incorporate third-party instruments, add modelled DUTs (devices under test), visually configure the system, graphically interconnect all items and automatically generate cable designs.

It draws on an integrated database, and includes built-in validation and connectivity checks to eliminate design errors. Designs are securely stored in the cloud, allowing for collaboration with colleagues, third-party systems integrators, and Pickering engineers worldwide through the integrated project manager.

For data integrity, it includes version control and revision history as well as automated generation of wiring schematics, pin-to-pin lists, datasheets, bill of materials, and visualisation models to reduce documentation time and simplify maintenance.

Further enhancements will include AI for product selection, simulated signal performance and the integration of Pickering’s Switch Path Manager tool for auto-signal routing.

Pickering adds to LXI microwave switching range