Automated power test- Hardware testing of power consumption

Sammanfattning: For ensuring quality of a product it is important to perform hardware testing on a device. The aim of this thesis was to simplify and improve the process for power consumption hardware testing at a company. The result was one semi-automated and one fully automated solution. Another key component was that the system should have high flexibility, everything from the choice of instruments to the test sequence. The semi-automated solution consists of a hardware tool which allows the user to easily change between different power types (PoE, DC and AC) and additional functionality used in the diagnostic testing. It also gives the user a good overview between the connection of the instruments and the device under test. The tool can be used with both PC-controlled and manually adjusted instruments. It could be used together with the semi-automated software or as a separate tool. The semi-automated software is based on the idea of controlling the instrument from the PC. The software has five predetermined test cases and the ability to manually interact with the instruments. Another function is the possibility to set a timer and ping the device under test. The manual interaction is a way of including the hardware tests that are not yet automated or to be of assistance when troubleshooting. It is recommended that the company develops a graphical user interface to improve the interaction with the program. The fully automated solution is supposedly the most time efficient procedure. Since the solution is a conceptual model and have not yet been implemented, this cannot be verified. The device itself will regulate voltage, conduct measurements and change the test setup. This solution requires less human involvement and becomes more independent. Since the voltage is controlled within the device and the current is likewise conducted in the device, there is no need for any PC-controlled instruments.