Innovative, new analyser software and antenna coupler save testing time and simplify measurements

Ismaning/Chessington/Indianapolis, 29 September 2003 – Willtek Communications today released two new products that will simplify radio frequency testing. The new version of the 9100 Handheld Spectrum Analyzer will revolutionise the way in which test engineers track faults in radio frequency (RF) equipment using limit templates and acoustic checks. The new 4915 Antenna Coupler will enable higher levels of testing mobile phones in less time, ultimately helping to enhance the profitability and productivity of service factories by reducing test time and effects of the RF environment on measurement repeatability.

With the new software version for the 9100 Handheld Spectrum Analyzer, Willtek helps to minimize the time technicians spend on fault finding. Cyrille Damany, Chief Executive Officer, Willtek, said “Willtek has considerable expertise in developing user-friendly RF testing equipment which we have applied to develop advance spectrum analysers. It is our ongoing objective to assist our customers in improving their processes so that they can save time and money with Willtek products.”

With the AM- or FM-demodulated signal in the loudspeaker of the 9100, experienced test engineers can examine the signal acoustically. This way, they can easily detect the presence of a known pattern that may or may not be required. There are many situations where such an acoustic check is accomplished more rapidly than a statistical analysis of the spectrum.

Version 2 of the software for the 9100 Handheld Spectrum Analyzer will be shipped with all new instruments. Willtek’s customers can also download the new version from the Internet and update their analysers with the new features, free of charge.

The 4915 Antenna Coupler is a unique solution enabling reliable serial testing of mobile phones. By always fixing the phone in the same position on the coupler, repeatability of measurement results can now be significantly increased, resulting in accurate and valid pass/fail verdicts. For service factories, this improvement means that unnecessary repair costs decrease. The mobile phone frame allows safe and extremely fast handling, resulting in higher throughput in both incoming inspection and final test. Service factories secure the investment in the coupler by exchanging the frame for another type of mobile without requiring a complete new antenna coupler.

Notes to editors,

The limit templates with pass/fail verdict allow technicians to quickly assess signal quality using the 9100 Handheld Spectrum Analyzer. Finding intermittent disruptions in signals is a common and time-consuming task in service. The new 9100 software permits automated signal monitoring in terms of frequency and amplitude checks. A beep informs the user when the spectrum of the signal exceeds a predefined template; the measurement is held on screen to support further analysis. Test technicians can define templates for upper and lower limits in a PC application supplied with the 9100. Up to 100 of these templates can be loaded and stored in the instrument. This comfortable feature is unique in analysers of this size and price.

The new software version also supports channel power measurements. Field engineers can test base stations over the antenna and measure the radiated power within a defined channel bandwidth using this new test mode. For predefined communication systems, the frequency can be entered simply as a channel number. The channel power can easily be read from the large-scale colour display.