What prompted Analog Devices to change their production test solution for the new iMEMS microphone?
We needed ATE that met the demands of a product test plan with the lowest possible cost. To increase operational efficiency of the manufacturing floor, we typically use most of our ATE solutions to test many different products on the same platform. However, big-iron ATE solutions are far too costly, too highly featured, and physically too large to efficiently meet the modest instrumentation requirements of a dedicated iMEMS microphone tester. Q: Why did you select PXI as your new test hardware platform? A: We chose PXI because of its low cost, small size, and flexible configuration. Low equipment cost and high throughput are paramount from an overall cost-per-unit perspective. Because commercial products such as the iMEMS microphone can also require rapid increases in capacity, the low cost helps us avoid large initial capital expenditures. In addition, a PXI system is small compared to a big-iron ATE tester, so we need fewer square feet of expensive factory floor space. Lastly, PXI al
