Anritsu has introduced hardware and software for its MT8820C that extends the capability of the tester to support measurement of parametric data during an LTE test mode call. Capable of conducting TS36.521-1-compliant transmit and receive tests, the enhanced MT8820C can now serve as an Enhanced Node B (eNode B) signaling simulator, adding to current capability for non-signaling test. The new eNode B signaling capability enables LTE device makers to more cost-efficiently ensure the performance of their products while improving time-to-market, says Anritsu.
With addition of LTE signaling measurement capability, the MT8820C now offers full test support for multiple modes from 2G to 4G, including GSM/GPRS/E-GPRS, 1xRTT/1xEV-DO, TD-SCDMA/HSPA, W-CDMA/HSPA, and LTE. Due to this broad support, it is well-suited for testing multimode LTE devices that include historical 2G and 3G modes, says Anritsu.
A full suite of RF parametric and functional tests are available with the MT8820C. Functional tests supported include voice calls, video calls, and current consumption. Parametric tests include traditional UE transmitter and receiver tests as well as new LTE capability for measurement of resource blocks, resource elements, and CQI, with support for these measurements in either signaling or non-signaling mode.
The MT8820C supports all LTE bands and bandwidths, including bandwidths from 1.4 MHz to 20 MHz. Due to full compatibility with the previous-generation MT8820B API, the MT8820C is a convenient drop-in replacement, adding full LTE test capabilities.
Anritsu says LTE production-line test speed and throughput can be increased when the Parallelphone Measurement (PPM) option is installed in the MT8820C Radio Communications Analyzer. This option allows for simultaneous testing of two LTE mobile devices using a single MT8820C, reducing test time and cost-of-test, as well as conserving space. This option also allows for parallel testing of newer dual-radio devices, such as Simultaneous 1x Voice/EVDO Data (SVDO) and Simultaneous Voice/LTE Data (SV-LTE).
Manufacturing and inspection test times are further reduced, says Anritsu, by advanced/high-speed DSP, as well as integrated chipset-specific high-speed calibration modes.
Additionally, the MT8820C allows users to select multiple test items for parallel and simultaneous measurement from one data sample. One-touch operation supports easy and quick measurement of transmit and receive parametrics, including transmit frequency, modulation accuracy, transmit power, spectrum emission mask, adjacent channel leakage power ratio, occupied bandwidth, and BER/BLER.