Alongside the ongoing evolution of cutting-edge technologies, rising power requirements are a given — and alongside those requirements come new testing challenges. Different test equipment developers may take different paths to meeting those challenges; some may focus on increasing the capacity of power supplies to drive their test systems, while others may focus on expanding their systems’ ability to simulate devices under test (DUTs).
These two paths — separate, yet complementary — are exemplified by a pair of recent product announcements.
Testing challenges around rising power requirements might be met through increased capacity power supplies (like the Advantest DC Scale XHC32, at top) or by electronic loads with expanded simulation capabilities (like the HVL Series from B&K Precision). Source: Advantest/B&KThe DC Scale XHC32 is a new addition to the Advantest portfolio of power supplies for the V93000 EXA Scale SoC test platform that Electronics360 first reported on in 2020. The XHC32 extends the test platform, covering high-power requirements with a single card to enable unlimited and flexible ganging of channels, fast load step and clamp response, and extended profiling capabilities.
Advantest said the very high current requirements of 1000A or more at core voltages below 1 V require an automatic test equipment (ATE) system with precise power-delivery capabilities. With 32 channels, the XHC32 provides what the company says is an unprecedented single-instrument total current of up to 640A, enabling the card to efficiently address the rapidly rising power requirements for artificial intelligence (AI) accelerators, HPC chips, graphical processing units (GPUs) and other high-current devices like network switches and high-end application processors.
B&K Precision takes a different route: simulating DUTs with electronic loads designed to absorb power and sink current.
The company’s HVL Series of DC electronic loads is comprised of six models with various voltage and current configurations. Aimed at evaluating DC-DC converters, batteries, battery chargers, photovoltaic arrays and other high-power DC sources, it is suitable for rack-mount applications; 3 kW models are packaged in a 3U form factor, while 6 kW models utilize 5U. It’s possible to combine up to 10 identical HVL Series model in parallel, increasing total sink capabilities to 60 kW.
The series can operate under multiple modes such as constant current (CC), constant voltage (CV), constant resistance (CR) and constant power (CW). It also offers continuous, pulse and toggle transient operations to precisely switch between two load levels. Its wide operating voltage range and high-power capabilities make it a comprehensive solution for electric vehicle (EV) batteries, on-board EV chargers and charging station test applications.
While both products represent valid approaches to the same challenge, the best solution will be dictated by the needs of any given application. Learn more at Electronics360’s companion site, GlobalSpec, which offers specification guides for both power supplies and electronic loads and load banks.
