rack mount test gear - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: kirkpennock
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: April 06, 2013, 10:39:35 pm
content: who uses rack mount test gear and for what or why? the buttons on the front and the outputs in the back, does not work well on a bench.Thanks

author: skipjackrc4
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2013, 12:47:21 am
content: A lot of large power supplies were made to be rack mounted. That makes it easy to keep a lot of supplies in a small area, without cluttering or crushing your bench. For labs, this is the most common use of a rack system that I have seen. I have a few power system designs in mind, and they're all going into rack enclosures for this very purpose.In permanent installations such as production testing, rack mounting of an oscilloscope, DMM, or whatever else makes sense because it keeps things nice and tidy. The same goes for communications work where a lot of the same equipment is used in the same configuration all the time. For lab work, I prefer test equipment to be overhead on the bench. It's hard to beat a 19" rack for equipment density, though.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2013, 05:53:16 am
content: As well you can get small rack sections for small network termination cabinets, which take all the equipment and still have a small footprint. Steel unit with integrated PDU, makes power easy to control.

author: vk6zgo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2013, 06:22:07 am
content: TV & Broadcast Stations are other places where rack mounted test gear is common,as for many tests it is very convenient.Some equipment has dummy holes at the front,& fairly long coax leads to the connectors,so that you can reposition the inputs & outputs from the back to the front.

author: Wuerstchenhund
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2013, 07:10:45 am
content: Quote from: kirkpennock on April 06, 2013, 10:39:35 pmRack mount test kit is used a lot in test benches (called' Automatic Test Equipment' (ATE)). ATEs are used in many industries like aerospace/defence (maintenance/test/repair of avionics and weapon system components) or in the telecommunications industry (test/repair of cell tower components and xDSL line cards), and also in production of most electronic and lots of non-electronic items when the product goes into alignment/quality control/functional check phases.Not all ATE kit is rack mount (especially when the ATE only contains one or two instruments, desktop variants are often used), and not all rack mount T&M kit has outputs on the rear, though, it depends what is required for a specific ATE and what has been ordered from the T&M manufacturer. Therefore most better T&M kit can be ordered in standalone (with feet/handles) or rackmount (no feet/handle but with 19" ears and rails) config, and also allows rear outputs as alternative options.

author: metalphreak
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2013, 09:54:33 am
content: In a typical rack setup, you have easy access to both the front AND the back. All of the cabling is at the rear so the front is easy to access all the controls.

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2013, 10:10:39 am
content: It's usually a fairly straightforward job to move a connector from the rear to the front. There is often a hole in the front panel metalwork that's been covered over, just need a suitable cable and connector to suit.In the UK, these guys are good for custom RF cables.http://www.gigatronix.co.uk/default.php?_minc=home

author: kirkpennock
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: April 07, 2013, 03:22:08 pm
content: Thanks for all the responses.