We recently looked at Tektronix’s strategy for their new Veridae acquisition, but we also looked more broadly at their overall focuses, one of which is on serial links. They recently demonstrated a platform for testing such links.

There’s been a tendency for test boxes to be confined to individual protocols or families of protocols; their main point here is the integration of numerous protocols in the one box. Specifically, they list as examples Ethernet, Fibre Channel, Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI), and Serial Front Panel Data Port (FPDP). Or any combination of those.

But they also have a means for users to define their own protocols.

The other thing that tends to create a multiplicity of boxes on the benchtop is the function: pattern generators, for example, are different from analyzers. Their proposal is that a single box can act as protocol analyzer, traffic generator, system stress tester, or bit-error-rate tester – or any combination of those.

But don’t go looking for this just yet on the shelves of your neighborhood protocol analyzer dealer. This was a technology demonstration at ESC Boston. Although, it almost sounds like a product isn’t far behind…

More info in their release… (and hopefully more when released)