funded by
NXP Semiconductors
Regio 13
Land Oberösterreich
FFG
BMVIT
EU/ERDF


Member of
NFC Forum

Overview


The focus of the NFC Testing project is the development of profound measurements methods to verify interoperability between different Near Field Communication (NFC) devices. Based on the results of the theoretical analysis we have developed a robot-based testing system.

The device under test (DUT) can be moved in x-, y- and z-coordinates, thus the measurement results of the connection status can be displayed in 2D and 3D. The whole system is controlled by a test suite on a personal computer. The test suite takes over tasks like: controlling the robot, acquisition and illustration of the measurement points, managing tests and results, and handling devices under test. The communication between the test suite and the DUT can be established by using Bluetooth, GPRS, WiFi or PC/SC.

Another feature of the test suite is the integration of an oscilloscope for the measurement of the field amplitude. It is also possible to include an NFC protocol analyzer.

With the robot-based testing system the interoperability within new NFC devices like mobile phones, PDAs and contactless readers can be tested to grant the reliability of the near field communication. Another focus of the test system are performance tests to check power aware methods, circuit and antenna modications as well as positioning considerations.

Block Diagram


The system consists of the following components:

  • the testsuite, which is the controlling component of the system
  • the NFC testing robot, which can be moved in three dimensions
  • the mobile server, which establishes the connection to the DUT via Bluetooth, GPRS, PC/SC, WiFi, ...
  • the database server for the storage of the measurement results
  • measurement instrument such as an oscilloscope, protocol or field analyzer
  • devices under test (DUT): for example NFC reader, NFC phones, NFC smart devices, smartcards, tags, NFC eval boards, ...

The testsuite, the database server and the mobile server can be installed on a single PC or Notebook. Thus you need only a Notebook and the NFC testing robot to accomplish interoperability tests.

Downloads

 

FH OOE Forschungs & Entwicklungs GmbH | Softwarepark 11 • 4232 Hagenberg • Austria