Four More Essential Debugging Tools

“Four More Essential Debugging Tools” explores four powerful debugging tools available on the MXR B-series oscilloscope: Fault Hunter, InfiniiScan, measurement limit testing, and mask testing. These tools are designed to help engineers quickly troubleshoot unexpected signal behavior and identify elusive errors with ease.

The video begins with an introduction highlighting the versatility and enhanced capabilities of the MXR B-series oscilloscope. One of the most versatile tools discussed is Fault Hunter, which has been significantly improved in the new MXR-B model. Thanks to hardware acceleration, the MXR-B can make 60% more measurements than the previous A model within the same analysis duration. When Auto Setup is selected, Fault Hunter performs a quick 30-second statistical analysis on the signal to establish a baseline of common waveform measurements, such as pulse width, rise time, and fall time. These measurements are used to determine the limits for six tests that identify outliers in the signal. The six trigger modes include positive and negative glitches, positive or negative runs, and slow-rising or slow-falling edges. Fault Hunter automatically locates errors based on these measurements and saves the waveform for future analysis, allowing users to easily determine when and under what conditions anomalies occur.

Next, the video introduces InfiniiScan, now a standard feature on the MXR B-series. InfiniiScan software enables users to visually inspect individual waveforms using zone triggering and advanced triggers to address signal integrity issues in electronic designs. Traditional hardware triggering and deep memory are often used to capture elusive events, but they can limit the ability to set up complex trigger conditions. InfiniiScan overcomes these limitations by using software to set up multiple triggers, making it easier to find elusive events. InfiniiScan includes two key components: Software finders and measurement limit testing. The software offers five special Finder modes: Measurement Finder, Zone Qualified Finder, Generic Serial Finder, Runt Finder, and Non-Monotonic Edge Finder. The Zone Qualified mode is particularly useful for isolating abnormalities in waveforms by simply drawing a box on the screen. The MXR B-series’ zone qualified triggering runs over 35% faster than the previous generation.

Measurement limit testing, another feature of InfiniiScan, allows users to set up to five measurements and define acceptable limit ranges for each. When the signal deviates from these conditions, users can quickly navigate to the anomalies and save or export the results. This feature is essential for ensuring signal integrity and optimizing performance.

Finally, the video covers mask testing, a feature that provides almost instant pass/fail statistics. Mask testing is available on every channel and allows users to define their own masks by specifying horizontal and vertical tolerance bands. Users can also import industry-standard masks or use auto masks to let the oscilloscope handle the work. Multiple mask test criteria can be specified, such as running indefinitely with accumulated pass/fail statistics or stopping on failure. The MXR B-series collects over 270% more measurements during mask testing compared to the previous generation.