ScanWorks FPGA-Controlled Test
About ScanWorks FPGA-Controlled Test
Your FPGA can be a powerful embedded board tester!
In today’s complex FPGA-based designs, you will usually develop a robust set of boundary scan tests to test all interconnects and memories possible. Then to increase the fault spectrum covered past shorts/opens, you can put test IP in the FPGA to enhance the test program. For example, IP in the FPGA could monitor temperatures, voltages, and other functional features of the board.
The ScanWorks FCT development environment and its IP library works with your specific FPGA design tools automatically to generate the Verilog needed and then have that converted to SVF to program the FPGA. Then like ScanWorks boundary scan, a low-cost FCT manufacturing runtime version can be deployed in production to achieve test coverage improvement, thus improving production yields.
Software-driven instruments
FCT is another non-intrusive board test (NBT) technology for the ScanWorks platform for embedded instruments. ScanWorks FCT is unique from the other NBT technologies since it is both the software to control the embedded instrument, but also includes the embedded instrument IP. FCT and the platform’s other NBT technologies combined give you high test coverage options to optimize your overall production test program.
Because of the skyrocketing gate densities in today’s FPGAs, they can serve as the perfect launching pad for a non-intrusive software-driven board tester. ScanWorks FCT can help you test and debug your circuit boards during any phase of their lifecycle. Designers can do early stage programming and testing of the prototype hardware before final firmware or operating system software are ready. Look into ScanWorks FCT, you’ll be pleased with what you see.
FPGA-Controlled Test Development Software
The ScanWorks® FPGA-Controlled Test (FCT) Development Software provides an automated and extremely flexible methodology for embedding test IP into an FPGA on your design. You’ll simply select and configure the instruments needed from the included library, and ScanWorks automatically connects them into a cohesive on-chip test architecture. Next, it facilitates the synthesis of this design into firmware for the FPGA and creates the software image for programming the FPGA. Once inserted, ScanWorks serves as a drag-and-drop user interface for operating any and all instruments in the FPGA.
Key Features
- Increase Test Coverage
- Perform functional tests with turnkey IP
- Generate an FPGA-based tester without being an FPGA design expert (Verilog code is automatically generated, synthesized and translated into a program file for the target FPGA)
- Access a library of embedded instruments and other intellectual property (IP)
- Embed testers in FPGAs from Xilinx, Altera and others
- Develop your own customizable test IP
FPGA-Controlled Test Resources
FPGA-Controlled Test Manufacturing Software
ScanWorks® FPGA-Controlled Test (FCT) Manufacturing Software will enhance your production line with greater efficiency by increasing test coverage for yield improvement.
Features:
- Re-use ScanWorks FCT test instruments that were employed during design and prototype board bring-up
- Extend your structural, functional and performance test coverage during manufacturing
- Easily remove the ScanWorks FCT tester so that the FPGA’s functional firmware can be loaded as the next step in the production process
- Just like ScanWorks Boundary-Scan manufacturing software, seamlessly integrate ScanWorks FCT testers into functional testers, third-party test executives like NI LabVIEW and Teststand, or your own custom test application
Related Products
The ScanWorks platform for embedded instruments is supported by a wide variety of hardware controllers and accessories with which engineers can connect ScanWorks to their unit under test (UUT). Hardware is available for development, production and repair environments. The test platform required for ScanWorks is either a standard PC or a system with a built-in (embedded) JTAG controller.
Related eResources
A circuit board doesn’t have to be operational for functional tests to be applied to its I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) interfaces. What you need is 3 things: on-board 1149.1 JTAG, an FPGA and some IP.
