Turnkey Factory Production Tools

Labview-compatible two-axis test stand used to characterize optical components for an earth orbit satellite. The system includes DSP motion control and laser interferometer position feedback. Host software controls stage motion and acquisition of high-resolution time-stamped position records.
Labwindows-based turnkey tapehead skew adjustment tool uses COGNEX vision system along with a three-axis positioner using PMAC DSP motion controller with laser interferometer position feedback and two axes of tracking autofocus. Automated data gathering.
Ultralow following error positioning system using PMAC DSP motion controller on X-Y air-bearing stage with brushless linear DC motors and in-house designed DC servoamplifiers. Achieves following error of less than 0.5 microinches at vector feedrates of 1 centimeter per second.

ATE System Design

Development of factory test automation systems for new, and existing product lines. This includes designing custom hardware and using COTS (commercial off the shelf) instrumentation from companies like Agilent and Tektronix.
GUI interfaces (mostly Win32) designed for ease of training and use.
Database development (ACCESS, mySQL) to aid in process control functions.

Calibration equipment for focal plane assemblies used in acceptance testing. The instrumentation measures frequency response, noise, and settling time and produces the documents needed (plots, data tables). The host software controls the instrumentation using an IEEE-488 interface.
Dynamic electrical tester for disk head products. Electronics include: high-speed frequency synthesizer and pattern generator, peak detector, pulse width measurement, RMS noise measurement, spectrum analysis, and digitizer circuitry as well as the software and the algorithms required to perform the measurements.
Dynamic tape head test equipment for new magneto-resistive tape head designs including a very stable instrumentation grade reel to reel tape path with signal processing electronics, high frequency write current drivers, read bias generators, multiple channel signal multiplexers, and high gain, high frequency, low noise read amplifiers.

Bed-of-nails test fixture and control program for HP ATE Board Tester to do passive component verification, measurement of power supply current consumption and full functional testing of business computer processor board using signature analysis and ROM based test routines.