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Roos Instruments' Cassini communicates with Instruments through a proprietary communication bus called RIFL (Roos Instruments Fast Link). If a RIFL problem is suspected, this document can help you test, diagnose and debug the RIFL. With these steps, the RIFL communications can be tested to ensure it is functioning properly. If a problem is detected, these processes can be used to resolve a failure.



The entire RIFL communications tree or individual RIFL nodes (connections) can be testsed. The test can be run 1 time or repeated multiple times if there is an intermittent issue. The RIFL test checks 'nodes', and reports results for each node. Every RIFL connection is a node; each TIM; I/O Pod (handler pod, GPIB instrument Pod, etc.)and several internal Hubs. The Equipment Pool window shows all of the nodes. To determine what each Node Address is assigned, highlight an Instrument and look in the lower window. The 'Address' attribute is the node address and corresponds to the number reported by the RIFL test.

To Test RIFL Communication for all TIMs:
    1. Log On to Guru with a user with Developer or Maintenance role.
    2. Launch Cassini from the latest available entry by choosing Short Cuts button.
    3. From the Cassini application, choose System > Messages button and (optionally) choose Clear to remove the message log.
    4. Choose System > Equip > Nodes to open the Equipment Pool window.
    5. Choose Master instrument at the top of the list and choose Rifl Test from the right mouse button menu.
    6. Enter "1" in the Times to Repeat prompt and choose OK.
    7. If "test passed" is shows for every node, then successful RIFL Communications have been verified. Close all windows and continue troubleshooting the issue.
    8. Cassini will test the RIFL communication for each node, performing I/O and loopback tests. If a node fails, the tester will show a 'fail' message in red, as shown in Figure 2. The log will stop when the scan completes without any other indications or notices. Scroll up to the top to confirm that no failures were missed.

To Test a Specific Node:
    1. Follow steps 1-4 above to open the Equipment Pool.
    2. Instead of highlighting the 'Master', highlight the node that should be tested.
    3. Choose Rifl Test from the right mouse button menu.
    4. Enter "5" in the Times to Repeat prompt and choose OK.
    5. If "test passed" is reported then the communication is OK. If "fail" is reported, then follow the steps To Resolve a RIFL Failure Result.

To Resolve a RIFL Failure Result:
    1. For Example, In the Figure 3 image, the failed node is node 6. We can see in the equipment pool that the failed module at address 6 is the 'RFMeasure1' instrument in testhead location T5.
    2. A temporary short or power supply issue may cause the T-Location to go into "safe mode" and disable communications with the TIM. Choosing System > Startup to power OFF then power ON every RIFL Hub and Node may resolve the issue. Please report all RIFL fail issues to [email protected] to initiate an RMA process, if needed.
    3. Although rare, it is possible for a module to fail such that it causes multiple failures in the RIFL. In this case, a different debug technique is required. Disconnect all of the modules, including any pods. Run the master RIFL test. Pick a module and connect it. Perform a system check so that the tester will find it. Then run the master RIFL test again. Repeat this for each module. The one that causes the RIFL test to fail is the bad module.

Figure 1: Equipment Pool > Rifl Test Menu

Figure 2: Log File > test failure

Figure 3: Equipment Pool > Address


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