CN110611541A

CN110611541A - Wireless transceiver test method

Info

Publication number: CN110611541A
Application number: CN201810623042.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李彦青; 蔡辅元
Original assignee: Yuansheng Polytron Technologies Inc
Current assignee: Yuansheng Polytron Technologies Inc; Goldtek Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-06-15
Filing date: 2018-06-15
Publication date: 2019-12-24

Abstract

The invention provides a wireless transceiver test method, which is suitable for testing a wireless transceiver and comprises the following steps: a standard sample of the wireless transceiver is electrically connected to the first testing machine. The object to be tested of the wireless transceiver is electrically connected to a second testing machine. The standard sample is switched to a receiving mode, and whether a first packet from the object to be detected is received or not is judged. When the first packet is received, the standard sample is switched to a transmitting mode to send a second packet to the object to be tested. The object to be tested determines whether to receive the second packet. When the object to be tested judges to receive the second packet, the second testing machine judges whether the object to be tested is normal or not according to the receiving result of the object to be tested.

Description

Wireless transceiver test method

Technical Field

The present invention relates to testing of electronic devices, and more particularly, to a method for testing a wireless transceiver.

Background

Wireless transceivers are widely used in wireless communication technology, and have become an indispensable technological product in many people's lives. For example, cell phones, tablet computers, bluetooth headsets, and even some watches have wireless transceivers.

Before the electronic product leaves the factory, the electronic product needs to be subjected to a standardized test flow so as to ensure that the quality of the electronic product leaving the factory reaches the standard. Conventional testing procedures for wireless transceivers are described. One is to separate the antenna from the base frequency circuit for testing, and the other is to analyze the field shape and frequency spectrum of the whole transceiver. Usually, both tests are performed, however, when the field shape and the spectrum analysis are involved, a spectrum analysis instrument is required, and the test operation is cumbersome. These reasons will significantly increase the production cost of wireless transceiver manufacturers.

Disclosure of Invention

A method for testing a wireless transceiver is provided, which reduces the use of a spectrum analyzer even without the need of a spectrum analyzer, thereby reducing the cost in the test flow during the production process.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a method for testing a wireless transceiver is adapted to test a wireless transceiver, the method comprising the steps of: a standard sample of the wireless transceiver is electrically connected to the first testing machine. The object to be tested of the wireless transceiver is electrically connected to a second testing machine. The standard sample is switched to a receiving mode, and whether a first packet from the object to be detected is received or not is judged. When the first packet is received, the standard sample is switched to a transmitting mode to send a second packet to the object to be tested. The object to be tested determines whether to receive the second packet. When the object to be tested judges to receive the second packet, the second testing machine judges whether the object to be tested is normal or not according to the receiving result of the object to be tested.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the method for testing a wireless transceiver further includes determining whether the at least one object under test is normal according to a received signal strength indication related to the received result.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the standard sample is maintained in the receiving mode when the first packet is not received.

In an embodiment of the present invention, before the standard sample is switched to a receiving mode, the method further includes switching the at least one object to be tested to the transmitting mode to transmit the first packet, and switching the at least one object to be tested to the receiving mode after transmitting the first packet to perform the step of determining whether to receive the second packet.

In an embodiment of the invention, when the at least one object under test determines that the second packet is not received within a predetermined time, the at least one object under test switches to the transmission mode to transmit the first packet.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the predetermined time is less than or equal to 2 seconds.

In an embodiment of the invention, the first packet includes a Media Access Control address (MAC address) of the at least one dut.

In an embodiment of the invention, the at least one object under test is a plurality of objects under test, and the second testing machine calculates a yield (yield) of the objects under test according to the receiving result and the mac address corresponding to each of the objects under test.

In an embodiment of the invention, when the receiving result indicates that the format of the second packet is correct, the at least one object under test is determined to be normal.

In an embodiment of the invention, when the receiving result indicates that the format of the second packet is incorrect, it is determined that the at least one object under test is abnormal.

In summary, the testing method for wireless transceiver according to the present invention uses the standard sample to directly perform the wireless signal transceiving test with the object to be tested. And judging whether the object to be detected is normal or not according to the signal receiving and sending result. The complexity and cost of the wireless transceiver test flow are reduced.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operating environment of a method for testing a wireless transceiver according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an operating environment for performing a test with a standard sample according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of a control method of the standard sample in the test process.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a method for controlling an analyte during a test procedure.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart illustrating how to determine whether the sample is normal in step 407.

Description of the main elements

Shielding room	1000
		Antenna with a shield	2100～2600
Test machine	3100、3200
		Standard sample	GS1、GS2
Test object	DUT1～DUT5

Detailed Description

The following detailed description will further illustrate the invention in conjunction with the above-described figures.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operating environment of a testing method for a wireless transceiver according to an embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of antennas 2100-2600 are disposed in a shielding chamber 1000, wherein the antenna 2100 is used for electrically connecting with a standard sample GS1, and the antennas 2200-2600 are used for electrically connecting with an object to be measured. The testing environment also includes a first testing tool 3100 and a second testing tool 3200. In one embodiment, the manufacturer of the wireless transceiver initially takes the standard samples GS1 and GS 2. The manufacturer may first electrically connect the standard sample GS1 to the antenna 2100 and the first testing machine 3100, and then electrically connect the standard sample GS2 to the antenna 2200 and the second testing machine 3200, respectively, as shown in fig. 2. Thus, the manufacturer can confirm whether the standard sample GS1 and the standard sample GS2 are working normally, and obtain the standard parameters of the standard sample to be tested in the shielding chamber 1000. In one embodiment, the first testing tool 3100 and the second testing tool 3200 are, for example, personal computers, but may also be industrial computers or other computing devices with computing, data processing and control capabilities. The wireless transceiver mentioned in the present invention is, for example, a long-distance wide area network (LoRaWAN) wireless transceiver, a Bluetooth (Bluetooth) wireless transceiver, or a Low power Bluetooth (BLE) wireless transceiver.

Specifically, in the embodiment of fig. 2, the manufacturer uses two standard samples to confirm that the test equipment and the antenna are set correctly. Because if one of the standard samples GS1 and GS1 fails to transmit or receive wireless signals correctly, it indicates that a certain link in the whole testing environment is set to be wrong. Since the standard sample generally refers to a wireless transceiver that the manufacturer has previously verified that various parameters meet the standard and can function properly.

Then, when the producer completes the production of the wireless transceiver, the DUT 1-5 are obtained. At this time, the manufacturer places the DUT 1-DUT 5 in the shielding chamber, and each DUT is electrically connected to the corresponding antenna and the second testing machine 3200. Specifically, the DUT1 is electrically connected to the antenna 2200, the DUT2 is electrically connected to the antenna 2300, the DUT3 is electrically connected to the antenna 2400, the DUT4 is electrically connected to the antenna 2400, and the DUT5 is electrically connected to the antenna 2600.

Into the testing process, the following description is given for the test of DUT1, but those skilled in the art should be able to deduce the process of testing multiple DUTs. Referring to fig. 3 and fig. 4, fig. 3 is a flowchart of a control method of the standard sample GS1 in the test flow, and fig. 4 is a flowchart of a control method of the DUT1 in the test flow. As shown in step 301, the first testing machine 3100 controls the standard sample GS1 to switch to the receiving mode, and then as shown in step 303, the standard sample GS1 determines whether the first packet from the DUT1 is received. If the first packet is not received by the standard sample GS1, go back to step 301, in other words, the standard sample GS1 is maintained in the receiving mode before the first packet is not received by the standard sample GS 1. Upon receipt of the first packet, the standard sample GS1 switches to transmit mode, as shown in step 305, and the standard sample GS1 sends a second packet to the DUT1, as shown in step 307.

On the other hand, the DUT1 operates as follows, in step 401, packing its Media Access Control address (MAC address) into a first packet and transmitting the first packet through the antenna 2200. Then, as shown in step 403, the DUT1 switches to the receiving mode. Then, in step 405, the DUT1 determines whether it receives the second packet.

In one embodiment, the DUT1 determines whether the second packet has not been received within a time interval, such as 0.5 seconds, and returns to step 401. In another embodiment, the DUT1 waits for a period of time, such as 0.5 seconds, after determining that the second packet is not received before returning to step 401. When the DUT1 determines that the second packet is received, in step 407, the second testing machine 3200 determines whether the DUT1 is normal according to the reception result of the DUT 1. In one embodiment, the time interval is, for example, less than or equal to 2 seconds. In another embodiment, the DUT1 generates an error report when the second packet is not received by the DUT1 after repeating multiple cycles. Specifically, if the DUT1 does not receive the second packet, the first packet may not be correctly received by the standard sample GS1 or the DUT1 may have a problem with its ability to receive signals. Thus, when the second testing machine 3200 receives the error report of the DUT1 to be tested, it is determined that the DUT1 is abnormal.

In one embodiment, in step 401, the first packet includes information of the transmission power. When the standard sample GS1 receives the first packet, the standard sample GS1 calculates a Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) according to the transmission power of the first packet and the Received power calculated when the first packet is Received. In the field of wireless communications, received signal strength indications are typically used to extrapolate the distance between two antennas (two wireless transceivers). However, in the present embodiment, the distance between the antenna 2100 and the antenna 2200 is a known fixed value (predetermined distance). The Predetermined distance corresponds to a Predetermined Received Signal Strength Indication (PRSSI). For example, the default rssi may be one of the standard parameters previously obtained from the standard samples GS1 and GS2 during the transceiving operation via the antenna 2100 and the antenna 2200. The standard sample GS1 embedded the calculated received signal strength indication in the second packet.

Please refer to fig. 5, which is a flowchart illustrating how the second testing machine determines whether the DUT1 is normal in step 407. The DUT1 parses the second packet as shown in step 501. As mentioned above, the calculated rssi of the standard sample GS1 is included in the second packet. In step 503, the DUT determines whether the rssi included in the second packet is compliant with the predetermined rssi. Specifically, according to the industry standard, when the rssi included in the second packet is smaller than the default rssi by 3 db, the manufacturer determines that the signal transmission capability of the DUT1 does not meet the standard. Similarly, the standard sample GS1 may embed the information of the transmission power into the second packet when the second packet is transmitted through the antenna 2100, and the DUT1 calculates another received signal strength indicator according to the signal strength when the second packet is received and the transmission power embedded in the second packet. The calculated received signal strength indication relates to the signal receiving capability of the DUT 1.

In one embodiment, the DUT1 further determines whether the received packet format is correct. Specifically, since the DUT1 is the baseband circuit of the entire wireless transceiver, if the processed packet format is incorrect, it is often indicative that the wireless transceiver is defective in the mixer (mixer) or Local Oscillator (LO) circuit.

In one embodiment, the DUT1 generates an error report when the rssi is determined to be not compliant or the packet format is incorrect, and the DUT1 generates a pass report otherwise. Then, as shown in step 505, the DUT1 transmits the generated report (error report or pass report) and the MAC address (MAC address) to the second testing tool 3200. Therefore, the second testing machine 3200 can determine whether the DUT1 is normal or abnormal according to the report from the DUT 1. Specifically, when the DUT 1-DUT 5 in the test program are tested, the second testing machine 3200 collects a plurality of different reports, and each report corresponds to a mac address. Therefore, the second testing machine 3200 can calculate the yield of the DUT 1-DUT 5 according to the data.

In summary, according to the testing method of the wireless transceiver disclosed in the present invention, whether the object to be tested is abnormal is determined by whether the packet is received, whether the packet format is correct, or whether the received signal strength indication meets the standard. And the complicated procedures of using a frequency spectrograph and carrying out the field shape analysis are avoided, and the probability of error caused by manual operation is reduced. Meanwhile, because no spectrometer is needed in the program, a manufacturer (manufacturer) does not need to purchase a large number of spectrometers, and the production cost is reduced.

Claims

1. A method for testing a wireless transceiver is suitable for testing a wireless transceiver, and is characterized in that: the wireless transceiver test method comprises the following steps:

electrically connecting a standard sample of the wireless transceiver to a first test machine;

electrically connecting at least one object to be tested of the wireless transceiver to a second testing machine;

switching the standard sample to a receiving mode, and judging whether a first packet from the at least one object to be detected is received;

when the first packet is received, the standard sample is switched to a transmission mode to send a second packet to the at least one object to be detected;

the at least one object to be tested judges whether to receive the second packet; and

when the at least one object to be tested judges to receive the second packet, the second testing machine judges whether the at least one object to be tested is normal or not according to at least one receiving result of the at least one object to be tested.

2. The method of testing a wireless transceiver of claim 1, wherein: the method further includes determining whether the at least one object under test is normal based on a received signal strength indication associated with the received result.

3. The method of testing a wireless transceiver of claim 1, wherein: when the first packet is not received, the standard sample is maintained in the receiving mode.

4. The method of testing a wireless transceiver of claim 1, wherein: before the standard sample is switched to a receiving mode, the method further comprises the step that the at least one object to be tested is switched to the transmitting mode to transmit the first packet, and the at least one object to be tested is switched to the receiving mode after transmitting the first packet to execute the step of judging whether to receive the second packet.

5. The method of testing a wireless transceiver of claim 4, wherein: when the at least one object to be tested judges that the second packet is not received within a preset time, the at least one object to be tested is switched to the transmitting mode to transmit the first packet.

6. The method of testing a wireless transceiver of claim 5, wherein: the preset time is less than or equal to 2 seconds.

7. The wireless transceiver testing method of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: the first packet includes a Media Access Control address (MAC address) of the at least one dut.

8. The method of testing a wireless transceiver of claim 7, wherein: the at least one object to be tested is a plurality of objects to be tested, and the second testing machine calculates yield (yield rate) of the objects to be tested according to the receiving result and the media access control address corresponding to each object to be tested.

9. The method of testing a wireless transceiver of claim 1, wherein: when the receiving result indicates that the format of the second packet is correct, the at least one object to be tested is judged to be normal.

10. The wireless transceiver testing method of claim 1 or 9, wherein: and when the receiving result indicates that the format of the second packet is incorrect, judging that the at least one object to be tested is abnormal.