The RI 7100A ATE system attributes have evolved over three generations. The latest generation offers improved test plan, fixture, and hardware repeatability between systems. The systems are classified as GEN 1, GEN 2 or GEN 3 corresponding to the system's primary attributes and production date. GEN 1 and GEN 2 systems are obsolete, not upgradable and have a limited supply of spare hardware equipment.
Test plan and fixture portability were not practical for previous generation systems because these systems were built to specific customer requirements and each system was a custom configuration. GEN 1 systems were shipped starting in 1992 and are custom configurations that require special test plans, fixtures and hardware support to interoperate with other systems. GEN 2 systems were shipped before 1999 and have semi-custom RF port configurations as well as different optional equipment and performance capabilities that may require test plan modifications to work even with other GEN 2 systems.
GEN 3 systems have identical standard configurations but may have different options installed. The options are standard to allow for fixture and test plan compatibility. For GEN 3 systems, RI will provide continued support for many years after the production date. New capablities to GEN 3 systems can be installed in the field to upgrade tester functionality and satisfy new customer requirements. GEN 3 systems are backward compatible so test plans written for GEN 2 testers will run on GEN 3 testers, but test plans written for GEN 3 testers may not run on GEN 2 testers.
 | GEN 1 - Obsolete | GEN 2 - Obsolete (<1999) |
Calibrated RF Frequency | 4 GHz | 4 GHz, 6 GHz special |
Receiver IF Gain | 10 dB IF steps, 0 to 50 dB | 10 dB IF steps, 0 to 50 dB |
Test Head RF Attenuation | 10 dB steps, 0-110 dB, Mechanical | 10 dB steps, 0-40 dB, Mechanical |
High Src Dynamic Range | Src 1,2,3,4 Water cooled | Src 1,2 Option Air Cooled |
AM/FM modulation | N/A | N/A |
Digital Modulation Control | N/A | Special Module Required |
Pulsed RF Test Capability | Slow Rate 30 msec min pulse | Slow Rate 30 msec min pulse |
Dual Channel ARB | Special Module, 5 MHz Clock | N/A |
Dual Channel Digitizer | Special Module, 10 MHz Rate | N/A |
Bit Error Rate measurements | N/A | N/A |
Power VI's | Permanently connected | Permanently connected |
Digital Bits ( DBs ) | 60 kHz max serial data speed | 60 kHz max serial data speed |
Serial Protocol | Standard Serial | Standard Serial |
Parametric Measurements | No parametric measure | No parametric measure |
VCC 1 and VCC 2 | Permanently connected | Switched by DP 9-16 |
VCC 3 and VCC 4 | Switched by DP 1-8 | Switched by DP 1-9 |
VCC 5 and VCC 6 | N/A | Permanently connected |
VCC 7 and VCC 8 | N/A | N/A |
Voltage Measure Lines (VMs) | 16 ( VM 1, 1N, ...8, 8N ) | 8 ( VM 1, 1N, ...4, 4N ) (VM 5-8N replaced by VCCs) |
"I-Drive" Input | On Pogo Pin 71 (see *Note) | On Pogo Pin 71 (see *Note) |
Handler Control Interface | Parallel Handler Interface | Parallel Handler Interface |
On Wafer Test Capability | N/A | Custom Special Only |
Test Head Fixture Mounting | Original-style spring (upgradable ) | Original-style spring (upgradable) |
Test Fixture Types | Standard | Standard |
System Control Bus | Daisy Chain RIFL (Fiber Optics) | Daisy Chain RIFL (Fiber Optics) |
System Module Cooling | Water Heat Exchanger | Air Flow |
| GEN 3 - Current | Benefits of New Features |
Calibrated to RF Frequency | 6 GHz (12 GHz and 20 GHz as options) | May be required for 802.11b or modeling |
Receiver IF Gain | 6 dB IF steps (can simulate 10 dB steps for compatibility), 20-56 dB | Improved sensitivity, dynamic range, accuracy & repeatability. |
Test Head RF Attenuation | 10 dB steps, 0-30 dB, Electronic and on all paths | Faster control, more flexibility and longer life |
High Src Dynamic Range | Src 1,2,3 Option Air Cooled | Improved reliability |
AM/FM modulation | Optional for Source 1 | Required for Bluetooth |
Digital Modulation Control | Standard Option for Source 1&2 Module | Required for ACPR testing |
Pulsed RF Test Capability | Slow Rate 30 msec pulse Standard, High Rate optional | Required for Radar and PA Testing |
Dual Channel ARB | 10 MHz or 40 MHz Clock Options | Required for WLAN parts |
Dual Channel Digitizer | 90 MHz Bandwidth | |
Bit Error Rate measurements | 10 MHz BER Option For Digitizer | Required for Bluetooth |
Power VI's | Switched, normally disconnected | Better low current measurement. |
Digital Bits ( DBs ) | 2.5 MHz max serial data speed | Higher Data Rate Serial Control |
Serial Protocol | Standard, I2C, I3C, SPI Serial, | |
Parametric Measurements | Switchable parametric measure to 10 Nano-amps standard (100 pico-amps optional) | Very low current capability for continuity and leakage testing |
VCC 1 and VCC 2 | Switched by DP 9-16 | |
VCC 3 and VCC 4 | Switched by DP 1-8 | Greater Functionality. |
VCC 5 and VCC 6 | Permanently connected | |
VCC 7 and VCC 8 | Permanently connected (Optional) | |
Voltage Measure Lines ( VMs) | 8 ( VM 1, 1N, ...4, 4N ) | Made room for more Device Power Lines (DP's) |
"I-Drive" Input | N/A (Pogo pin 71 was changed to GND) | (see *Note) |
Handler Control Interface | Serial, parallel or GPIB handler interface | Supports more types of handlers. |
On Wafer Test Capability | Standard Option | Support On-wafer testing |
Test Head Fixture Mounting | New-style cam type mounting | More robust fixture dock. |
Test Fixture Types | Standard, Universal, "Smart Fixture", or Multisite | Capable of Multi-site and Ping Pong Solutions |
| "Smart Fixture" extends the RIFL2 System Modules advanced capability to the Test Fixtures | Provides cost effective high speed digital part testing and expanded control to existing testers. |
System Control Bus | Star Wired RIFL2: 10 MBits/sec | Faster test execution times |
System Module Cooling | Air Flow | Reduced complexity and less maintenance |