Patents Assigned to National Instruments Corporation
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Patent number: 12235305Abstract: A system and method for testing an antenna-under-test (AUT). A multi-probe antenna array receiver is moved to a plurality of positions within a scan area. At each position, each probe antenna element of the receiver receives a near-field (NF) over-the-air (OTA) signal from the AUT. An alignment procedure is performed to align reception locations for signals received by different ones of the plurality of probe antenna elements. Correction factors are determined that characterize amplitude and phase discrepancies between the probe antenna elements of the receiver. The correction factors are applied to the received signals, and the corrected signals are combined at each reception location to obtain average signals. A far-field (FF) transmission pattern for the AUT is determined based on a discrete Fourier transform of the average signals and stored in a non-transitory computer readable memory medium.Type: GrantFiled: May 3, 2023Date of Patent: February 25, 2025Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Thomas Deckert, Martin Obermaier, Dirk Plettemeier
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System and method for efficient data movement in an orchestrated distributed measurement application
Patent number: 12177068Abstract: A method of orchestrating measurements in a measurement system includes configuring a first service with a first configuration for acquiring measurement data by an orchestrator. The method also includes receiving a moniker generated by the first service in response to being configured that represents the first configuration. The moniker includes a location of the first service and an identifier of the first configuration. The method also includes transferring the moniker to a second service configured to establish communication with the first service based on the location, consume the measurement data acquired by the first service using the first configuration and transmitted in response to receiving the identifier from the second service, and generate a result in response to receiving the measurement data from the first service. The method further includes receiving the result from the second service.Type: GrantFiled: March 2, 2023Date of Patent: December 24, 2024Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventor: Christopher George Cifra -
Patent number: 12149176Abstract: A multiphase current-sharing configuration may include at least two power supplies providing respective output-currents in the current-sharing configuration. One or more of the power supplies may itself be a multiphase power supply. A first power supply of the current-sharing configuration may detect a phase difference between an external control signal provided to the first power supply to control the output voltage of the first power supply, and an internal control signal provided by a VCO of the first power supply. The phase difference may be provided to an integrator to cause the internal control signal to track the external control signal when the external control signal is available, and maintain a present operating frequency of the internal control signal in case the external control signal is lost, in which case the internal control signal may be used to uninterruptedly control the output voltage of the first power supply.Type: GrantFiled: November 24, 2021Date of Patent: November 19, 2024Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: John G. Banaska, Chin-Hong Cheah
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Patent number: 12114462Abstract: Various types of electronic devices may be mounted in a chassis in order to facilitate interfacing with the devices, containing the devices, provide cooling systems which may remove heat from the electronic devices, etc. Delivering adequate cooling air flow to each electronic device in a chassis may be an important issue for the proper functioning, lifetime, or other characteristics of electronic devices contained in a chassis. Some electronic devices may be particularly challenging to cool due to various design characteristics. Other electronic devices may have other requirements that are not well served by existing chassis designs. For example, some electronic devices may benefit from additional electrical and/or thermal connections. Embodiments presented herein describe a novel design for a modular card cage accessory that may be configured to modify air flow and/or to meet particular requirements of an electronic device in a chassis, among various possibilities.Type: GrantFiled: August 16, 2022Date of Patent: October 8, 2024Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Richard G. Baldwin, Jr., Michael H. Singerman
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Patent number: 12088355Abstract: Systems and methods for emulating a channel for wireless communications between a transmit (TX) system-under-test (SUT) and a receive (RX) SUT. The TX and RX SUTs include integrated antenna arrays for transmitting and receiving wireless signals. For a plurality of paths of the emulated channel, and for each antenna element of the TX SUT, a respective phase shift and gain modification is applied to a wireless signals transmitted by the respective antenna element. The phase shifts and gain modifications emulate path length differences between different antenna elements. The signals for each antenna element are summed, and a path-specific modification is applied to each aggregate signal for each path. For each RX antenna element, phase shift and gain modifications are applied to emulate path-length differences for the RX antenna elements, the resultant signals are summed for each path, and the emulated wireless signals are output to the RX antenna elements.Type: GrantFiled: October 10, 2022Date of Patent: September 10, 2024Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Jeremy Mielens, John Ammerman, Aljosa Vrancic, Andrew Lynch
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Patent number: 12066971Abstract: A network interface peripheral device (NIP) may include a network interface for communicating with a network, and an interconnect interface for communicating with a processor subsystem. First buffers in the NIP may hold data received from and/or distributed to peer peripherals by the NIP, and second buffers may hold payload data of scheduled data streams transmitted to and/or received from the network by the NIP. Payload data from the data in the first buffers may be stored in the second buffers and transmitted to the network according to transmit events generated based on a received schedule. Data may be received from the network according to receive events generated based on the received schedule, and distributed from the second buffers to the first buffers. A centralized system configuration entity may generate the schedule, manage configuration of the NIP, and coordinate the internal configuration of the NIP with a network configuration flow.Type: GrantFiled: February 11, 2022Date of Patent: August 20, 2024Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Sundeep Chandhoke, Glen O. Sescila, III, Rafael Castro Scorsi
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Patent number: 11994545Abstract: A test system may be used for obtaining accurate remote sense voltage and/or current values. A measurement instrument may provide a regulated stimulus signal to a device under test (DUT) and measure a DUT signal developed at least partially in response to the stimulus signal. A test circuit may superimpose a test signal over the stimulus signal to cause the DUT signal to be developed further in response to the test signal. The DUT signal may be used to derive a resistance of the path that couples the measurement instrument to the DUT. The measurement instrument may include a source measure unit, the stimulus signal may be a regulated voltage, and the DUT signal may be a sense voltage. The harmonics of the DUT signal may be analyzed to determine a correlation between an amplitude of a measured fundamental frequency of the DUT signal and the resistance of the path.Type: GrantFiled: April 25, 2022Date of Patent: May 28, 2024Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Chin-Hong Cheah, Tatt-Wee Oong, Eric Hartner
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Publication number: 20240160542Abstract: Techniques for assigning scenario-based tests to test assets are described. In an example, a scenario-based test operable to test a key performance indicator (KPI) of a System Under Test (SUT), a component behavior exhibited by a first component of the SUT, and a scenario characteristic are received. Based on the component behavior and the scenario characteristic, a first plurality of behavior models associated with the component behavior are identified. Based on the scenario characteristic a characteristic value is extracted from the scenario-based test. Each behavior model of the first plurality of behavior models is executed using the characteristic value to generate a first plurality of predicted behavior outcomes. Based on the first plurality of predicted behavior outcomes, a first test asset type from a plurality of test asset types is selected and the scenario-based test is transmitted to a test asset of the first test asset type.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 10, 2022Publication date: May 16, 2024Applicant: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Shaul Teplinsky, Kyle Ross Bryson, Stephen Thung, Douglas William Farrell, James C. Nagle, Jeffrey Marcus Monroe
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Patent number: 11982699Abstract: A system and method for testing devices such as integrated circuits (IC) with integrated antenna arrays configured for wireless signal reception. The method performs a calibration operation on a reference device under test (DUT). During the calibration operation, the DUT receives a series of first signals from a first far-field (FF) location and a series of array transmissions from a second near-field (NF) location using different beamforming settings, and determines therefrom a set of calibration parameters. The calibration parameters may be used by a probe antenna system (PAS) to transmit an array transmission to the DUT from the second NF location to emulate a single probe or multi-probe transmission from the first FF location.Type: GrantFiled: November 22, 2021Date of Patent: May 14, 2024Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Martin Obermaier, Martin Laabs, Dirk Plettemeier, Marc Vanden Bossche, Thomas Deckert, Vincent Kotzsch, Johannes Dietmar Herbert Lange
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Patent number: 11959945Abstract: Embodiments are presented herein of an open-loop test system for testing vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs). A high-speed pulse generator may be used to produce nanoseconds pulses provided to the VCSEL device. A high-speed oscilloscope may be used to measure the resultant nanoseconds pulses across the VCSEL device. The VCSEL device voltage and VCSEL device current may be obtained from the measured nanosecond pulses according to compensation data derived from the system. A pre-test compensation procedure may be used to obtain the compensation data, which may include representative characteristics of each system component.Type: GrantFiled: November 26, 2020Date of Patent: April 16, 2024Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Jun Lu, John George Banaska, Matthew Tate Dougan, Jeffrey Allan Cornell, Wendi Song, Xuechen Han, Kunal Harsad Patel
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Patent number: 11901927Abstract: Dynamic range of radio frequency transmitters and receivers may be improved via a multiple-channel phasor configuration in which channels are phased in a manner that distributes the local oscillator phases over ?/2 radians. A multiple-channel phasing receiver may include a power splitter to split an input signal into multiple signals, and may further include multiple single-channel receivers providing intermediate signals. Each single-channel receiver may have an input that receives a respective signal of the multiple signals, and may further have an output to provide a respective intermediate signal as a function of the respective input signal, a total gain applied to the respective input signal, a signal frequency of the local oscillator signal, and a respective phase of the local oscillator signal. The multiple-channel receiver may include a digital signal processor that combines the plurality of intermediate signals into a single output signal.Type: GrantFiled: April 5, 2022Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Nikhil Ashok Deshmukh, Michael Loehning
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Patent number: 11901636Abstract: Methods, apparatuses, and systems for verifying alignment of a compact antenna test range (CATR) are presented. A radio frequency (RF) profile may be generated based on test signals received by a reference antenna at a plurality of orientations. Phase and amplitude data of the RF profile may be used to determine whether the CATR is aligned properly.Type: GrantFiled: November 4, 2020Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Gerardo Orozco Valdes, Dong Chen
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Patent number: 11803456Abstract: Methods and computing devices for allocating test pods to a distributed computing system for executing a test plan on a device-under-test (DUT). Each test pod may include a test microservice including one or more test steps and an event microservice specifying function relations between the test microservice and other test microservices. The test pods are allocated to different servers to perform a distributed execution of the test plan on the DUT through one or more test interfaces.Type: GrantFiled: September 1, 2021Date of Patent: October 31, 2023Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Sundeep Chandhoke, Gururaja Kasanadi Ramachandra, Rajaramm Chokkalingam Malarvizhy, Varun Mehra, Bjoern Bachmann
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Patent number: 11796621Abstract: Techniques are disclosed related to determining a modulation quality measurement of a device-under-test (DUT). A modulated signal is received from a source a plurality of times, and each received modulated signal is transmitted to each of a first vector signal analyzer (VSA) and a second VSA. The first VSA and the second VSA demodulate the received modulated signals to produce first error vectors and second error vectors, respectively. A cross-correlation calculation is performed on the first error vectors and second error vectors of respective received modulated signals to produce a complex-valued cross-correlation measurement, and a real component of the cross-correlation measurement is averaged over the plurality of received modulated signals. A modulation quality measurement is determined based on the averaged cross-correlation measurement.Type: GrantFiled: November 12, 2021Date of Patent: October 24, 2023Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventor: Sartaj Chaudhary
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Patent number: 11789074Abstract: Described herein are systems, methods, and other techniques for identifying redundant parameters and reducing parameters for testing a device. A set of test values and limits for a set of parameters are received. A set of simulated test values for the set of parameters are determined based on one or more probabilistic representations for the set of parameters. The one or more probabilistic representations are constructed based on the set of test values. A set of cumulative probabilities of passing for the set of parameters are calculated based on the set of simulated test values and the limits. A reduced set of parameters are determined from the set of parameters based on the set of cumulative probabilities of passing. The reduced set of parameters are deployed for testing the device.Type: GrantFiled: October 13, 2021Date of Patent: October 17, 2023Assignee: NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS CORPORATIONInventors: James C. Nagle, Stephen Thung, Sergey Kizunov, Shaul Teplinsky
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Patent number: 11774475Abstract: A reflectometer may include two directional couplers in a parallel configuration, sharing the same section of a signal line or through-line. For example, two directional couplers may be disposed across from each other on opposite sides of the shared through-line. One of the directional couplers may couple, to a first port of the reflectometer, a portion of the signal power of a first signal flowing from the first end of the shared through-line to the second end of the shared through-line, and the other directional coupler may couple, to a second port of the reflectometer, a portion of the signal power of a second signal flowing from the second end of the shared through-line to the first end of the shared through-line. The reflectometer benefits from reduced size and signal loss with respect to reflectometers having a serial configuration. When used in vector network analyzer (VNA) systems, this results in higher output power and higher dynamic range of the VNA.Type: GrantFiled: July 13, 2021Date of Patent: October 3, 2023Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Justin Regis Magers, Michael Joseph Seibel, Marcus Kieling daSilva
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Patent number: 11778768Abstract: A connector gap between a module connector mating surface and the backplane connector of a chassis may be eliminated through a mechanism that forcefully pushes (or pulls) the module towards the backplane and/or forcefully pushes (or pulls) the backplane toward the module. A spring-loaded or resilient element may be used to fasten the module in a way that effectively fills any designed-in and tolerance-induced gap in the connector interface, allowing the connector to fully seat. In addition, a gasket or other compressible member may be included at the connector mating interface. The gap in the connector interface may be reduced by introducing adjustable card cage members that are capable of being set during the assembly or manufacturing process using special alignment fixtures. The gap in the connector interface may also be reduced by introducing a higher tolerance capable manufacturing process, such as machining, to the card cage sub-assembly.Type: GrantFiled: August 20, 2021Date of Patent: October 3, 2023Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Richard G. Baldwin, Jr., Dennis Vance Toth
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SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR EFFICIENT DATA MOVEMENT IN AN ORCHESTRATED DISTRIBUTED MEASUREMENT APPLICATION
Publication number: 20230283516Abstract: A method of orchestrating measurements in a measurement system includes configuring a first service with a first configuration for acquiring measurement data by an orchestrator. The method also includes receiving a moniker generated by the first service in response to being configured that represents the first configuration. The moniker includes a location of the first service and an identifier of the first configuration. The method also includes transferring the moniker to a second service configured to establish communication with the first service based on the location, consume the measurement data acquired by the first service using the first configuration and transmitted in response to receiving the identifier from the second service, and generate a result in response to receiving the measurement data from the first service. The method further includes receiving the result from the second service.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 2, 2023Publication date: September 7, 2023Applicant: National Instruments CorporationInventor: Christopher George Cifra -
Patent number: 11736129Abstract: Methods and wireless devices for selecting a local oscillator frequency to use for conducting orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) communications. For each of a plurality of local oscillator frequencies, a wireless device determines a respective interference power resultant from the local oscillator frequency for each of a plurality of subcarriers, and determines a cost function by performing a summation over the interference powers associated with each of the plurality of subcarriers. The wireless device selects a first local oscillator frequency with the smallest cost function to use for wireless communications. The wireless device performs wireless communications through the plurality of subcarriers using the first local oscillator frequency.Type: GrantFiled: October 29, 2019Date of Patent: August 22, 2023Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventor: Karl F. Nieman
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Patent number: 11726190Abstract: A system for emulating an over-the-air environment for testing a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) unit under test (UUT). The system may comprise a lens system that receives light from the LiDAR UUT and a plurality of optical processing chains. The system may generate light into free space based on the optical signals processed by each chain. The system may process received light optically to maintain coherence with light received from the LiDAR unit under test and may process all points in a LiDAR image simultaneously. The system may operate to emulate an over-the-air environment for a time-of-flight LiDAR UUT, a frequency modulated continuous wave LiDAR UUT, and/or a flash LiDAR UUT.Type: GrantFiled: May 7, 2021Date of Patent: August 15, 2023Assignee: National Instruments CorporationInventors: Jason Marks, Marcus Kieling daSilva