Rohde & Schwarz brings new IoT test system

R&S TS-290 IoT carrier acceptance test system
Test and measurement company Rohde & Schwarz announced its new R&S TS-290 IoT test system for facilitating Internet of Things (IoT) integration.

Rohde & Schwarz, a Germany-based technology company, said its R&S TS-290 IoT carrier acceptance test system offers RF, protocol and performance test cases in a single box. Rohde & Schwarz said its IoT test system is in response to US’s largest wireless network operator’s decision to publish specific test plans for IoT integrators.

There will be more than 75 billion networked devices worldwide by 2025, according to the Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA). Network operators are preparing their mobile networks for IoT wireless modules, with a focus on device categories Cat 1, Cat M1 and Cat NB1.

The US-based wireless network operator has published a Host Device Certification Test Plan for manufacturers of IoT-enabled devices. The certification test plan goes beyond the basic requirements set down by 3GPP and defines additional requirements for subscriber devices in the network.

Munich-based Rohde & Schwarz said the R&S TS-290 offers a flexible test system for Cat 1. The R&S TS-290 will be capable of supporting future IoT tests from other network operators, dependent on the required test scope.

The R&S TS-290 test system is made up of an R&S CMW290 functional radio communication tester and the R&S CONTEST sequencer software. The software runs provider-specific RF, protocol and performance test cases – automatically and with reproducible results. Users, even those without programming knowledge, can create their own test plans conveniently with the drag-and-drop function.

Rohde & Schwarz said the R&S CMW290 functional radio communication tester meets the specific requirements of IoT integrators and their typically cost-sensitive applications. The tester handles cellular technologies such as LTE as well as WLAN and Bluetooth.

“For end-to-end application testing, the R&S CMW290 can simulate a cellular network and set up a connection between the application on the device or system and the server. This enables users to verify the correct functioning of platforms with integrated wireless modules in a defined network,” Rohde & Schwarz said.

Meanwhile, Rohde & Schwarz Cybersecurity announced the availability of its new Modbus protocol detection and extraction capabilities provided by the deep packet inspection (DPI) engine R&S PACE 2.

Rohde & Schwarz said the DPI engine delivers Modbus content and metadata extraction and enables IT security equipment vendors to gain full visibility of Modbus protocol communication in order to detect vulnerabilities and provide protection for the IIoT.