Methods of control and measurements of components of the onboard radio engineering complex
Authors: Kulikov Aleksey V. 
Published: September 2023

Background. The relevance of the topic of this work is due to the need to increase the reliability and quality of the results of measuring control of modules of various levels and antenna arrays that are part of the onboard radio engineering complex, as well as to increase the reliability and parametric efficiency of the radio engineering complex. Aim. Development of a method and methodology for integrated control of radio frequency modules of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd levels in the process of design, production and testing based on modern automation tools and processes. Methods. Full-scale experiment, computer modeling, programming, expert assessments, research, autonomous and acceptance tests were used. Results. The choice of a working control model was made. Based on it, an automated workplace has been developed. It includes integrated control and measuring equipment controlled by special software, a software package with a common operator interface. To control the testing process, a software package has been developed that automatically sets the necessary operating modes of the modules and provides a stimulating signal from the vector network analyzer in accordance with the specified parameters. After the end of testing, a test report is generated and printed. If the modules are tested for compliance with technical specifications, the protocol is formed in accordance with GOST. The test sequence is developed using the NI TestStand automated testing environment, and the routines that control the operating modes of the products are developed using C/C++ and NI LabVIEW graphical development tools. The automated workplace implements the following functions: functional electronic control of circuits and nodes of radio frequency modules and the product as a whole, electrical integrity control of circuits and nodes of frequency modules, programming of digital components, conducting complex tests of frequency modules, conducting complex tests of antennas and antenna arrays. The developed algorithm includes a stage of self-testing of the automated workplace hardware. After entering the necessary information, a step-by-step cycle of monitoring the module parameters is started. It begins with the connection of the device under test to the automated workplace and ends with the preparation of a test report and a message about the validity or unfitness of the totality of the measured parameter values. The final conclusion about the operability of the control object is made automatically after the measurement of all parameters is completed in the form of a pop-up dialog box. It contains one of two mutually exclusive statements: «Control successfully passed», «Control failed». Conclusion. The algorithm and methodology of automated control and tuning have been developed, which allows to increase the reliability and accuracy (by 5–15 %) of the measurement results of the electrical parameters of the PPM at the stages of tuning and testing. A software package for automated control has been developed. An automated control workplace has been developed.