One analyser, multiple protocols
1 min read
After a short delay required to obtain a CE mark, Tektronix' TPI4000 protocol analyser is now available in Europe following its launch elsewhere earlier this year. The test platform is said to allow engineers to analyse, stimulate, stress and characterise high speed serial links at data rates of up to 10Gbit/s.
The company says the TPI4000 allows engineers to use one instrument to perform multiple test functions and to look at a variety of protocols such as Ethernet, Fibre Channel, Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI), and Serial Front Panel Data Port (FPDP).
The device has been developed by Californian based Absolute Analysis and is being offered by Tektronix on an OEM basis. Dave Ireland, Tektronix' EMEA technical marketing manager, said part of the process of offering the product included making sure it met Tektronix' quality standards. "It's one instrument meeting multiple needs," he claimed. "Protocol analysers are normally dedicated to one high speed bus. With customers integrating multiple high speed buses in their designs, we saw unfilled demand. Not only can users look at different protocols, they can also generate stimuli and stress test their designs."
There are two versions of the analyser. The TPI4202 is a portable unit, with a built in monitor and keyboard, which supports up to eight ports. The TPI4208 is a 4U rack mount unit supporting up to 32 ports. Each model is configurable with options to support different data rates, to support different protocols and to support different applications.
The TPI4000 can be configured by the user to be any combination of protocol analyser, traffic generator, system stress tester or bit error rate tester. It can also support any combination of protocols simultaneously and offers an editable database that allows customers to define custom protocols, a function believed to be attractive to those working on mil/aero projects.
