The Five Trends of Future OSC
Parallel measure to serial measurements
The past embedded design usually adopts parallel architecture; it means that every bus has its own path. So, as long as you can use state trigger to find an event, it can be directly decode the data on the bus.
However, modern embedded design generally uses the serial system structure–that is continuously sending bus data. The reason for doing this is the space of the circuit boards it needs is lesser, costs are lower, and power requirements are lower because of adopting the embedded clock. Therefore, the oscilloscope makers provided the serial data trigger function, search characteristics and agreement observation program to help you find the events on and to decode and measure it. As this agreement constantly emerging and a new generation of agreement enter the market, the oscilloscope suppliers must keep up with the pace of the new technology to make the user can effectively use the protocol to work.
Mixed signal oscilloscope
Mixed signal oscilloscope (MSO) is first launched by HP/Agilent Company ten years ago. It is a comprehensive test instrument which has the availability of oscilloscope, the measurement capabilities of logical analyzer and some serial protocol analysis function. In MSO display, you can view the various the simulation of the waveform and digital waveform on time arrangement. Although MSO fail to provide all the channels the logical analyzer can provide, its use can make up for that. The logical analyzer is too complex and difficult to use, and oscilloscope is relatively simple and convenient. This is the advantage of MSO-integrating the strength of all test equipments, and finding perfect balance between them.
MSO is created aiming at the current popular technology of embedded mixed signal system. For example, automotive electronic system usually has digital control simulation motor controller and sensors. In the past, people often choose the traditional oscilloscope to analyze this kind of system, but oscilloscope often doesn’t have enough trigger ability and input channel. Therefore, people must also use logical analyzer, as a result, set up and operating become more complex.
MSO completely solved the problem, and it is the best instrument to analyze embedded mixed signal system.
Powerful portable oscilloscope & custom general oscilloscope
In the past, the oscilloscope volume with high performance is huge, while an oscilloscope which is easy to carry has low performance, and user can only choose one of them. The modern high-speed design and serial data make many people urgently need a portable high-performance oscilloscope.
At present, more and more people are using software package provided by many similar oscilloscopes to customize its general oscilloscope. Some applications, such as all kinds of serial decoding software package, vector signal analysis (VSA) software, power application software and offline view and analysis software, the user can customize and use their general oscilloscope with very personalized way.
Oscilloscope is more used for automatic inspection tools
Before, the engineer or technical personnel mainly used oscilloscope for debugging and the design work, such as a fault diagnosis of electrical components. Now, despite the oscilloscope still has this effect, it is more common to used in automatic verification -that is, check the equipment to meet a serial data standard technology index requirements.
In the field of consistency, each equipment is using a serial data bus technology must meet predetermined technology index, so that it can ensure different equipment manufacturers can be compatible.
With the second and third generation standards emerge, data rate of equipment is much higher, requirements to the oscilloscope signal integrity and eye pattern analysis of performance increases, and it requires an oscilloscope to the greatest extent to reduce the influence of system under test, because in high data rate conditions, these effects could be very serious. In addition, the industry developed a consistent application used to automatic test equipment.
Better display
The users now need to have better monitor, there are many reasons. First of all, with the development of society, more and more people get used to use big size, higher resolution displays. Not long ago, using small computer monitor or TV screen is still very common. Today, the large LCD and plasma display are full of electronics store shelves–these daily use equipment are equipped with high performance monitor, people naturally want to other device also have that displays. Therefore, many oscilloscope makers are all equipped with large size high resolution displays oscilloscope.
The second reason is that people now need to display more signals in the oscilloscope at the same time, including simulation data signals and digital data signals, thus oscilloscope must be equipped with display large enough to show all of the waveform correctly. In addition, the display also must have a high enough resolution and color, so that users can separate each waveform and read mark decoding.