Software architecture requirements for DoD automatic test systems

The next generation automatic test system (NGATS) is the latest addition to the Integrated family of test equipment (IFTE) developed and managed by product manager, test, measurement and diagnostic equipment (PM TMDE). This is Version 6 of what is commonly known as the Base Shop Test Facility series of systems developed by the off platform, automatic test system program. NGATS is a reconfigurable, general-purpose, mobile, deployable, automatic test system designed to provide sustainment support to all Army weapon systems. This flexible testing platform will finally standardize and reduce the quantity of the Army's ATE systems to one modern tester and improve weapon system availability. It will allow for a decrease in logistical support requirements for ATE systems and the supported weapons systems and increase the mobility, deployability, affordability and supportability, of automated test equipment. NGATS assures compliance with Joint NxTest architecture and will support the agile rapid global combat support (ARGCS) advanced concept technology demonstration (ACTD) by using a common framework for DOD automatic test systems (ATS). Incremental deployment of this system will ultimately modernize and replace three existing test platforms, DSESTS, BSTF (V) 3, and BSTF (V) 5. NGATS will not only support the weapons systems currently fielded but will also support additional weapons systems as they are developed and fielded in the future. The NGATS will initially take advantage of the existing Test Program Sets for legacy weapons systems however new systems and those legacy systems that will remain in the Army inventory will have TPSs designed to take full advantage of the modern NGATS technology. Increment 1 replaces DSESTS and supports the weapons systems in the heavy brigade combat team (HBCT). The TPSs for Abrams, Bradley and other systems will be rehosted to NGATS with significant improvements. Increment 2 replaces BSTF (V) 3 and supports the MLRS, Avenger, Paladin, TOW, SINCGARS, Kiowa Warrior, Ground Based Sensor, G/VLLD, and M1A1 (SRUs) systems. Increment 3 replaces BSTF (V) 5 and supports the Kiowa Warrior and Apache. There has been increased interest in utilizing the IFTE NGATS as an Army organic sustainment support platform. Other systems that are candidates for support are KNIGHT, LLDR, STRYKER, FCS, Firefinder, LOSAT, NLOS, HIMARS, Land Warrior, SHORADS, TAD, and CROWS.

This paper describes the incorporation of a Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) video stimulus instrument in the Navy's Consolidated Automated Support System (CASS) ATS. Included are COTS instrument selection, CASS software modifications, CASS modifications, and product enhancements, which evolved out of the effort. The video stimulus requirement of the U.S Navy's Consolidated Automated Support System (CASS) was fulfilled via the integration of a commercial instrument into the CASS. The effort involved product research, selection, and testing; mechanical and electrical design and testing; software engineering; integration; and fielding. The major component (a commercial video stimulus instrument) was selected. CASS software was modified to support an ATLAS interface to the instrument. The CASS ATS was modified to accommodate the instrument; this modification required mechanical design testing. The video signal path (instrument to CASS interface) was developed; and the product was enhanced to provide rudimentary animation capabilities in support of infrared tracking systems. The focus of the paper is product selection and requirements matching; software development and integration with the existing product; system testing and calibration; retrofitting of fielded systems. A brief section focuses on enhancements (beyond the original scope) that evolved from capabilities of the COTS instrument.

The development of various parts of DoD Automatic Test Systems (ATSs), follows a costly process starting with the description of the products to be tested through fielding and operation of the ATS items. Insufficient implementation of standards in the ATS process is, to a large part, the reason for the high cost and risk. The IEEE Standards Coordinating Committee 20 (SCC20) is endeavoring to provide standards that address concerns of developing ATS and reducing associated costs. Two IEEE test standards are currently used by the Integrated Family of Test Equipment (IFTE). This paper investigates the potential benefits of greater use of IEEE standards during the development and maintenance cycles of IFTE and the associated Test Program Sets.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>

Migration, maintenance and regression of more than three hundred (300) Test Program Set (TPS) to support all existing (i.e., Consolidated Automated Support System (CASS) and Reconfigurable Transportable Consolidated Automated Support System (RTCASS)) and future (e.g., electronic Consolidated Automated Support System (eCASS)) CASS Family Automated Test Equipment (ATE) members can be an overwhelming task that requires compilation and build of source, translation, data transfer and data validation. CASS family automation tools can help TPS developers create and execute from Personal Computer (PC) environment CASS Virtual Address extension (VAX) Digital Command Line (DCL) scripting files without physically being on an ATE station; make Magneto-Optical (MO) disks (without user intervention) from VAX backup save set files; make automated Version Description Document (VDD) reports at Operational Test Program Set (OTPS) level; identify and fix corrupted Master Test Program Set Index (MTPSI) files; identify corrupted CASS Abbreviated Test Language for All Systems (ATLAS) files; identify missing CASS files (ATLAS source ATLAS lookup, graphics, backup save set, Digital Test Language, Digital Automated Test Program Generation (DATPG), shutdown, data, subassembly and Functional Extension Program); validate and create Automated Test System (ATS) Source Data Repository (ASDR) directory structure; create file list inventories for Configuration Management (CM) and Quality Assurance (QA); have a visual representation of the MTPSI card; and provide support for the Next Generation Operations Management Software (NxOMS) communication. This paper will demonstrate improvements from our previous suite of automation tools, before and after figures showing tools benefits, and faced hardware challenges.

This research project aims to expand the capability of current US Navy Automated Test Equipment (ATE) family of testers known as the Consolidated Automated Support System (CASS). Industry research is now focused on breaking the historical construct of test equipment. Advances in the field of Synthetic Instruments have opened the door to test avionics in new ways. Every year new capabilities are developed using core hardware and increasingly capable software modules to create complex waveforms. This research creates a Digital Radio Frequency Memory (DRFM) Synthetic Instrument that can be programmed to perform a wide array of low latency Radio Frequency (RF) tests. Synthetic Instruments are defined as a concatenation of hardware and software modules used in combination to emulate a traditional piece of electronic instrumentation. This Synthetic Instrument couples high speed Analog-to-Digital Converters (ADC) to high speed Digital-to-Analog Converters (DAC) with Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) in between for digital signal processing. An RF front end is used to down convert the RF to baseband where it is sampled, modified, and up converted back to RF. The FPGA performs Digital Signal Processing (DSP) on the signal to achieve the desired output. Application of this DRFM in automated testing is demonstrated using a Reconfigurable Transportable Consolidated Automated Support System (RTCASS) tester at Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) Jacksonville, FL. The Unit Under Test (UUT) is an ALQ-162 Defensive Electronic Countermeasures (DECM) receiver-transmitter. Ultra-low latency signals are generated to simulate enemy jamming stimulus. As the ALQ-162 detects and responds to the input, the DRFM switches to a new frequency. The time taken by the ALQ-162 to acquire, respond, and re-acquire is measured. This test confirms the internal Yttrium Iron Garnet (YIG) oscillator meets slew specifications. Currently Navy ATE can only test RF units using high latency steady state tests. This research project developed a supplemental unit that can be added to the VXI chassis in the CASS family of testers and conduct ultra-low latency active tests. The instrument acts as hardware-in-the-loop to perform real-time tests including a new capability to measure jamming response time from DECM avionics. Demonstrated performance capabilities include: latency <; 100 ns, output Spurious-Free Dynamic Range (SFDR) > 80 dBc, input SFDR > 60 dBc, frequency tuning resolution <; 2 Hz, and frequency settling time <; 0.5 ns. New RF capabilities developed by this effort parallel similar research ongoing for digital test instruments like the Teradyne High Speed Subsystem. Incorporating this Digital RF Memory synthetic instrument into current and future ATE will improve readiness and supportability of the fleet. Improvements demonstrated by this research project will expand the type and quantity of assets able to be tested by current and future ATE.

The purpose of this paper is to present a conceptual approach and to make practical recommendations on how to improve the current Automatic Test Equipment (ATE) testing and maintenance capabilities by utilizing the existing cloud computing model to build a globally linked ATE maintenance system. The basic tenet of the ATE community is to support a multi-tiered maintenance concept which, in general, is a three tiered system that is composed of organizational maintenance (O-level), intermediate maintenance (I-level), and depot maintenance (D-level) organizations. The goal of the ATE is to (1) quickly and accurately detect and isolate each fault, (2) provide software tools for analyzing historical data, and (3) gather, manage, and distribute accurate and reliable maintenance information for the failed Unit Under Test (UUT). The ATE system should provide services that will (1) maintain a repository of information that will improve fault detection and isolation, allow for off-platform assessments, document failures, and help quantify corrective actions, (2) reduce false UUT pulls, and (3) reduce repair time by prompting repair procedures. Furthermore, the ATE system should provide additional services that will help optimize the time to diagnose problems by using collected failure information and by recommending entry points into the Test Program Set (TPS) software. It should also present information to the ATE maintainer to aid in informed repair decisions which could be in the form of pilot debrief results, platform Built In Test (BIT) results, O-level test outcomes and corrective actions, and maintenance and usage history of the platform and UUT. So, based on this definition of ATE maintenance the use of cloud computing can be used to provide services to improve the overall ATE testing throughput which will result in bottom line improvements to ATE life cycle costs. By using cloud computing, which is defined to be “a model for enabling ubiquitous, convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction”, users can develop cloud computing models that will provide access to application software and databases that can be used to build a globally linked ATE maintenance system. This paper will discuss the essential characteristics of the cloud computing models and define the various flavors of cloud offerings available to designers today. This paper will also analyze the cloud computing model to arrive at a conceptual approach that can be used to enhance the current ATE Testing and Maintenance capabilities. Practical recommendations will be discussed on how to transform the current ATE Testing and Maintenance capabilities into the specific cloud computing model offerings in order to help configure a globally linked ATE maintenance system.

IntroductionDespite impressive progress in reducing risk of established transfusion‐transmitted infectious diseases (TTIDs), new emerging infectious disease (EID) threats continue to be identified and cause pressure to expand deferrals and testing in order to maintain the safety of transfusions.AimsReview recent progress in developing approaches for estimation of residual risk and test efficacy for established TTIDs, as well as new approaches for systematic surveillance and assessment of EIDs that may threaten the blood supply.MethodsSummarize recent publications and initiatives of the global blood banking community directed at reducing risk of traditional TTIDs as well as recent responses to EID threats.ResultsImplementation of enhanced serological assays and nucleic acid amplification technologies (NAT) has virtually eliminated risks of major TTIDs. Formal approaches have recently been developed to monitor and respond to EIDs by examining their properties with respect to transmissibility and potential for causing significant disease in transfusion recipients. New tools for quantitative risk assessment are under development to facilitate rigorous evaluation of scientific evidence, while also formally soliciting and considering public perception and fear and health economic realities.ConclusionThese ongoing efforts at refining our risk surveillance, assessment and decision analysis tools, coupled with focused research to quantify risks and evaluate interventions, presage an era of sustained safety and enhanced public trust in the blood supply.

Operations and support (OS sustained maintenance planning; total cost of ownership; and rightsourcing. Our challenge in the Automatic Test Systems (ATS) community is to engage in this process to provide a capability such that when avionics reliability requires it, intermediate level support is an effective and affordable support solution. We must, however, re-engineer our business processes to support affordable readiness in the Navy to ensure the products we provide meet our customers requirements. This paper will translate the business processes of acquiring and managing automatic test equipment (ATE) and test program sets (TPSs) into the four elements of affordable readiness and a cohesive vision of the future, while highlighting the opportunities end challenges confronting Government managers and our industry partners.

A 1994 study identified that between 1980 and 1992, the services spent approximately $50 billion on automatic test systems (ATS). Controlling proliferation of ATS became the DoD's goal and led to policy which stated that DoD programs shall select ATS families to meet all ATS acquisition needs, and that introduction of unique ATS must be minimized. Beginning in 1996, DoD and industry together began work toward an open architecture for ATS by identifying the set of critical interfaces or key elements for which standards needed to be defined. Shortly afterward, the Joint Service Nxtest integrated program team began efforts toward evolving test technologies for insertion into DoD ATS. The original architecture has evolved into the DoD ATS framework which is published in the defense information technology standards registry. The joint service ATS framework working group, under the NxTest IPT, is accelerating efforts toward completing the framework. Cooperation between the services and industry has reached new levels with active participation in working groups and standards development bodies. In addition to demonstrating emerging test technologies, the agile rapid global combat support (ARGCS) advance concept technology demonstration project is helping to mature the ATS framework. When the ATS framework is completed and DoD has a truly open architecture for ATS, it is anticipated that DoD's ATS policy may shift from a hardware (families and COTS) perspective to a situation wherein any tester that fully implements the ATS framework must satisfy DoD's ATS-related goals, and the actual hardware used becomes less important.

The Automatic Test System (ATS) Executive Directorate (ED) is charged with developing objectives for the Department of Defense (DoD) ATS modernization. The DoD ATS Framework Working Group (FWG) was established by the ATS ED to create a Framework addressing these objectives. The FWG consists of two sub-groups; Management, that includes members from all of the DoD Services, and Technical. The Framework is made up of key elements and associated specifications and standards that form the open system architecture approach for DoD ATSs. In addition to creating and updating key element definitions, the FWG focuses on identifying commercial ATS related specifications that might satisfy the elements in the Framework. The standards specified in the DoD ATS Framework are documented in the DoD's Information Technology Standards Repository (DISR) and thereby become a mandatory requirement for all DoD ATS acquisitions. The Framework is also being specifically called out in DoD ATS requirements documents so that its standards are incorporated in future DoD ATS acquisitions, such as the Navy's eCASS. Although the ATS Framework was originally defined more than 10 years ago, it continues to evolve as test technology evolves. A function of the FWG is to continually assess the Framework and plan the development and demonstration of specifications and standards to satisfy ATS Framework requirements. The FWG is currently participating in the standards development process via standards organizations, consortia, and working groups. The FWG is evaluating these standards in terms of applicability to the twenty plus key elements defined in the Framework. The FWG is also continually evaluating new test and information technologies to further refine and add new key elements. When necessary, the FWG provides requirements and potential solutions to standards development teams so that the resulting standard will fit within the Framework. When these standards are published and proven to meet the requirements of a particular Framework element, the FWG makes recommendations to the DoD's ATS Management Board (AMB) regarding how these standards should be represented in the DISR. Standards which are mandated will be required by the acquisition process, and vendors' products acquired by the DoD must conform to them. This paper will provide a summary of the current activities and issues impacting the ATS Framework with a discussion of the near term plans of the FWG. It will provide status on the key elements that the FWG members are currently working on. These elements include the Adapter Functional and Parametric Data (AFP), Diagnostic Data (DIAD), Diagnostic Services (DIAS), Instrument Functional and Parametric Data (IFP), Master Conformance Index (MCI), Maintenance Test Data (MTD), Resource Adapter Interface (RAI), Run Time Services (RTS), Prognostics and Health Management (PHM), and Test Station Functional and Parametric Data (TSFP). The standards that satisfy or partially satisfy these key elements, and the current status of these standards are discussed. The paper also describes the purpose of, and the FWG's role in, several industry working groups; including LAN extensions for Instrumentation (LXI), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Standards Coordinating Committee 20 (SCC20), Interchangeable Virtual Instruments (IVI), and Synthetic Instruments Working Group (SIWG). Finally, current issues, such as how signal modeling is to be incorporated within the Framework, the relationship to the DoD's efforts with those of the UK Ministry of Defense (MoD), the use of the DISR mandated elements in upcoming DoD ATS acquisitions, and how O-level test capabilities could be incorporated in the Framework are discussed.

Initiated in 2000, the NHS‐funded genetic testing service for monogenic diabetes at the Exeter Genomics Laboratory, Royal Devon &amp; Exeter Hospital, is the sole national provider for this service in England. The laboratory has undertaken testing for over 19,000 families and has diagnosed monogenic diabetes in over 9500 patients from the UK and across the world. Dr Kevin Colclough and colleagues here provide an insight into how genetic diagnostic testing leads to improved clinical care, how advances in testing technology are causing a paradigm shift in diagnosis, and how changes to test provision and funding are leading to the mainstreaming of genetic diagnosis in routine diabetes clinics.

Significant progress has been made in genetic and genomic testing for prostate cancer across the disease spectrum. Molecular profiling is increasingly relevant for routine clinical management, fueled in part by advancements in testing technology and integration of biomarkers into clinical trials. In metastatic prostate cancer, defects in DNA damage response genes are now established predictors of benefit to US Food and Drug Administration-approved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitors and immune checkpoint inhibitors, and trials are actively investigating these and other targeted treatment strategies in earlier disease states. Excitingly, opportunities for molecularly informed management beyond DNA damage response genes are also maturing. Germline genetic variants (eg, BRCA2 or MSH2/6) and polygenic germline risk scores are being investigated to inform cancer screening and active surveillance in at-risk carriers. RNA expression tests have recently gained traction in localized prostate cancer, enabling patient risk stratification and tailored treatment intensification via radiotherapy and/or androgen deprivation therapy for localized or salvage treatment. Finally, emerging minimally invasive circulating tumor DNA technology promises to enhance biomarker testing in advanced disease pending additional methodological and clinical validation. Collectively, genetic and genomic tests are rapidly becoming indispensable tools for informing the optimal clinical management of prostate cancer.

Sickle cell disease is a global health concern. In the UK and USA, where the condition is common, prenatal testing is a routine aspect of antenatal care and offered on the basis of informed reproductive choice. Notwithstanding considerable advances in testing technologies, prenatal diagnosis for sickle cell disease is not common in Africa. There is a particular lack of research examining parental perceptions about the acceptability of antenatal screening. This qualitative paper explores the perceptions of parents, who had lived experiences of caring for a child with SCD, towards prenatal testing for sickle cell in Ghana. A purposive sample of 27 parents (four fathers and 23 mothers) was recruited via a sickle cell clinic in Accra, Ghana. Material was collected using semi-structured interview, using a topic guide that explored parental views on prenatal testing, along with factors influencing decision making about antenatal care. The findings shown that parents believed the decision to accept testing should be negotiated between both parents rather than the extended family. The decision to accept testing did not mean that parents would use the information to terminate the pregnancy of a child with SCD. They mentioned that they were more likely to use the test result to prepare themselves for the birth of their child. Parents accepted, however, that choice was important and that some parents may wish to terminate the pregnancy, given the impact of SCD on a person's quality of life. Parents lack awareness about prenatal testing because the procedure was not part of antenatal services in Ghana. However, the majority would accept testing should the process be available and affordable. The paper suggests that policy needs to establish and promote sickle cell prenatal testing/prenatal diagnosis and awareness among at-risk populations, bearing in mind the cost implication of the technology, equal access to healthcare, and the importance of informed reproductive decision making, which connects to the parents' experience of testing/screening.

Background: Urinary system stones are a common clinical disease, with significant differences in incidence and recurrence rates between different countries and regions. The etiology and pathogenesis of urinary system stones have not been fully elucidated, but many studies have found that some bacteria and fungi that are difficult to detect in urine constitute a unique urinary microbiome. This special urinary microbiome is closely related to the occurrence and development of urinary system stones. By analyzing the urinary microbiome and its metabolic products, early diagnosis and treatment of urinary system stones can be carried out. Summary: This article reviews the relationship between the urinary microbiome and urinary system stones, discusses the impact of the microbiome on the formation of urinary system stones and its potential therapeutic value, with the aim of providing a reference for the early diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of urinary system stones. Key Messages: (i) Urinary stones are a common and recurrent disease, and there is no good way to prevent them. (ii) With advances in testing technology, studies have found that healthy human urine also contains various types of bacteria. (iii) Is there a potential connection between the urinary microbiota and urinary stones, and if so, can understanding these connections offer fresh perspectives and strategies for the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of urinary stones?

The dial gauge is used widely in the production line at present. The dial gauge has many types and huge quantity. At present, testing this type of instrument is mainly used manual observation method. By man-made factors, the testing efficiency and accuracy is low. In order to improve the test efficiency and accuracy, it is required to use the automatic test methods for dial gauge. Although the control algorithm of control system in automatic test system is simple, the control accuracy is high demanding. So the design of control systems is essential. This paper takes the dial gauge automatic test method for the object and studied on the control system in the automatic test system. It presents the design principles, methods in fully automatic test system and studied on the design of control systems, mechanical drive parts and the software architecture. Finally, through experimental results verify the test system design is reasonable. Practical application results show that the system is feasible, and the motion control system is high precision and higher intellectualized. It also has good application prospect, especially for some special environment which is not suitable for testing by human eye, this system shows its superiority.