CAN in Automation (CiA) has released updates to CiA 400, the multi-level networking specification and CiA 415, the application profile for road construction machine sensor systems. The documents are available free of charge to CiA members.
CiA-400 specificies the design of CANopen-based systems that use multi-level networks. It is possible to describe systems made […]

Geotest-Marvin Test Systems Inc. has joined the LXI Consortium as an advisory member. LXI (LAN eXtensions for Instrumentation) is a next-generation, LAN-based modular platform for automated test systems. As a leading global supplier of PXI- and PC-based test products, systems and solutions, Geotest expands the growing number of test and measurement companies supporting and promoting […]

The LXI Consortium recently announced that Agilent Technologies and Elgar Electronics are the first companies to ship LXI-certified products. LXI (LAN eXtensions for Instrumentation) is a next-generation, LAN-based modular platform for automated test systems. LXI certification indicates approval by the LXI Board to officially license the LXI logo for display on compliant products.
Agilent is now […]

Three SAE test standards were either revised or reaffirmed in December 2005:

J1621 DEC2005 (Reaffirmed) Engine Retarder Dynamometer Test and Capability Rating Procedure. Issued by the Truck And Bus Engine And Vehicle Performance Subcommittee, this Recommended Practice specifies:

a basis for net engine retarder power rating;
reference inlet air test conditions;
a method for correcting observed engine retarder power […]

I haven’t heard much about the use of ZigBee in automotive testing, but I can envision some applications for the remote monitoring and control standard. Having said that, I offer these two news items…Dan
Agilent Becomes First Test & Measurement Company to Join ZigBee Alliance
On Oct. 24, 2005, Agilent Technologies today announced it is the […]

I last ran an article on the Association for Standardisation of Automation and Measuring Systems (ASAM) standards back in January 2001. At the time, it looked like a promising initiative. Today, I am happy to report that much of that promise has been realized.
What ASAM is trying to do is to create standards for data […]

The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE International) and ZVEI–the German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers’ Association–recently agreed to jointly develop a new qualification standard for semiconductors.
When finalized, the “Robustness Validation” standard should help users discover the physical limits of semiconductors used in automotive applications and will form the basis of risk analysis. In addition to […]

Last week, I met with the marketing folks of a large CAD software company. In the course of our discussion, they mentioned that their new software is going to support OSEK and Autosar. OSEK bills itself as “an industry standard for an open-ended architecture for distributed control units in vehicles.” Autosar is a partnership that […]

The Association for Standardization of Automation and Measuring Systems (ASAM) is an auto industry trade group developing standards for data models, interfaces, and syntax specifications for a variety of applications (e.g. testing, evaluation, simulation).
ASAM User Days will be held on October 24-25, 2005 at the Tom Davis General Motors Conference Center, Pontiac, MI. This year, […]

Agilent is now shipping LXI IEEE-1588 demonstration kits to members of the LXI Consortium to help them design interoperable instruments and to further develop the IEEE-1588 standard. Agilent Laboratories developed the kit for its own LXI research and development, which is a LAN-based platform for automated test systems. The platform enables several instruments to synchronize […]