How to avoid ATE obsolescence through design, support, and standardized platforms
by Keith Moore, CEO at the Pickering Group
The aerospace sector faces some of the toughest electronic testing demands of any industry, with unique test needs driven by requirements for long operating life and high reliability in hostile environmental conditions. Avionics test engineers are tasked with identifying the most advanced test technologies, enabling them to design and implement mission-critical test and measurement systems.
Since the expected lifespan of the equipment supported by these test and measurement (T&M) systems is typically decades, one of the most expensive challenges test engineers face when maintaining automated test equipment (ATE) is obsolescence. Pickering Interfaces can help tackle the issues involved in designing, deploying, and sustaining such test systems, offering modular switching and simulation technologies to help engineering teams complete the job on time and on budget. The company supports its products for 15 to 20 years, or longer.
Obsolescence risks
“Mission-critical equipment with long lifecycles has parts that need to be tested decades after they were manufactured and their initial test systems were designed and built,” observes Keith Moore, Pickering CEO. “When instrumentation providers discontinue test system components, aerospace companies can be left stranded, trying to source replacements or facing an imminent and costly test system redesign.”
Furthermore, because the aerospace industry is highly regulated, changing significant components, software, or processes in a test system can trigger the need for that system to be re-certified, an undertaking that can cost anywhere from $1 million to $100 million.
How to avoid obsolescence
Pickering’s role as a trusted test and measurement partner for many of the world’s largest aerospace firms hinges on the company’s ability to not only help customers manage obsolescence but also minimize the chances of it occurring. Pickering’s proactive obsolescence strategy encompasses three key factors:
1. Planning for obsolescence during the design phase: Pickering engineering teams evaluate complete test plans and anticipate upcoming industry challenges to ensure any T&M solution will meet the application’s full demands.
2. Using standardized platforms: By supporting and maintaining more than 1,000 PXI and LXI modules (plus thousands more derived from those), Pickering offers industry-standard solutions that are more easily evolved.
3. Ensuring ultra-long-term support: Pickering commits to supporting modules designed into customer systems for the entire product lifecycle—even redesigning modules when necessary. And if customers previously standardized on competitor platforms—and now face obsolescence—Pickering can often adapt modules to match original hardware form, fit, and function (FFF).
PXI: The standard for automated test
In 2024, Pickering Interfaces marked 25 years of supporting PXI, the scalable, high-performance modular instrumentation standard first introduced in 1997. Developed as an open standard by computer-based test and measurement innovator, NI, PXI is defined and managed by the PXI Systems Alliance, an industry consortium of over 60 companies that maintains the PXI standard, ensuring interoperability. Pickering has been a PXISA Sponsor Member since 1998, actively engaged in the continuous development of the PXI standard and platform.
“Celebrating 25 years of supporting PXI is testament to the standard’s longevity,” said Moore, “And Pickering is proud to reaffirm its commitment as a longstanding supporter of and contributor to the PXI ecosystem. It’s incredible to think that the original three modules we developed for PXI a quarter of a century ago are still available for sale today—while the breadth and depth of modules we now offer is among the widest available from any PXI vendor.”
“PXI is now the de facto standard for automated test,” said Mark Wetzel, NI Fellow and PXISA Technical Committee Chair. “And continued innovation and collaboration with companies like Pickering will help ensure PXI remains the dominant standard for automated electronics test for another 25 years!”
PXI standardization has transformed the test lab and production floor with systems that reduce cost and form factor, while increasing throughput and maintaining performance. With over 200 PXI product families and more than 3,500 PXI/PXIe variants available to order, Pickering products are specified in test systems installed worldwide.
Migrating from VXI to PXI
The aerospace sector was an early adopter of modular test platforms, including VXI, which has served it well for more than 20 years. As VXI test systems become unsupported and obsolete, test system developers are looking to PXI as the next-generation modular platform. The availability of switching and instrumentation in PXI makes this choice compelling. However, the challenge of migrating test programs from VXI to PXI, specifically in switching applications, remains of concern. The ability to replicate original test configurations to support legacy field-replaceable units (FRUs) is critical for maintaining support for older test programs while planning for future requirements.
Pickering has developed PXI switching and simulation modules that can replicate previous VXI switching configurations, thereby simplifying integration and system setup. Its policy of supporting its products for 15 to 20 years, and even longer, means that next-generation PXI test systems will have a life as long as their predecessors.