Introducing the Test Expert Differences Report

Have these scenarios ever happened to you?

-You get a new job to process. The CAD department says, “nothing has changed, just one part number.” (You know better.)

-You need to examine an existing test fixture to accommodate a new product revision. Can we modify the existing fixture or do we need to build a new one?

-You have two different testers on different lines. What are the trade-offs of running your job down one line or the other?

If you’re responsible for programming the testers on the shop floor, I’m guessing that one, if not all, of these have happened to you.

The ability to compare one job to another is an invaluable tool for many reasons

  • Checking for CAD to CAD version changes
  • Fixture reusability
  • Test philosophy and approach

Our new Difference Report tool permits users to compare two Test Expert jobs. Using the familiar Windows Explorer interface, the user is able to review changes to components, nets and nails and use that information to make intelligent decisions.

Operating the Difference Reporter

Starting a differences session is simple:

From the Project Manager, select the two Test Expert jobs you want to compare with CTL/Left Click, then click the Differences icon in the upper right.

Differences Report Navigation

Checking for Component Differences

Here we see that R1000 only exists in Board1, R45 exists only in Board2, and two components have moved – R44 has a different Y location (in bold) in the two boards.

Test Expert Component Differences

Checking for Net Differences

Here we see the job DIFFJOB1 has one net unique to that job – MUTEMOD. The job DIFFJOB2 has one net unique to that job – VBMODIFIED. Also, there are two nets that have differing connectivity between the two jobs. For the net RUFTON, one job has six nodes on the net, the other job has four.

Net Differences

Checking for Nail Differences

We can check for nets whose coverage has been increased or reduced on the second board:

Test Expert Nail Differences

Test Expert Nail Differences

We can check for nets whose nail count is higher or lower on the second board. Here we see net named “11.12” has two nails on the first board, and only one nail on the second board.

test expert nail differences

We can check for nets whose position has moved:

Test Expert Nail Differences

We hope this sheds some light on our new report features. Thanks for taking time to have a look.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us at 855-642-2848 (Option 2 for Support), or send us an email using our contact form.

-Dave