ASSET’s ScanWorks supports PLX Technology’s PCI Express switch family’s visionPAK diagnostic toolset

“visionPAK provides unique capabilities embedded in PLX PCIe devices helping users in system bring-up, board level testing and field debug,” said Akber Kazmi, director of marketing at PLX. “ASSET ScanWorks support will enable system manufacturers to use our on-board devices to test other components and interconnects of the system more rigorously with lower cost before they get shipped to the customers.”

PLX’s visionPAK, supported by ASSET’s ScanWorks platform, is an exclusive toolset of diagnostic and monitoring features that are integrated into all PLX PCIe Gen 2 and Gen 3 switches and focused on getting designs to market faster. visionPAK hardware features are offered standard via the PLX software design kit (SDK) and include tools to measure Rx eye-inside the device for validating signal integrity; a function to inject errors to check system behavior; a function to generate packets/traffic to saturate x16 PCIe Gen 2/3, loopback Tx to debug data paths, and the capability for monitoring packet performance.

“When integrated with ScanWorks using an IEEE P1687 approach, PLX’s visionPAK provides printed circuit board (PCB) validation, test and debug functions to enhance the signal integrity and high-speed bus performance on circuit boards to detect manufacturing defects and process variances,” said Tim Caffee, ASSET’s vice president of I/O instrumentation. “PLX has more than 65 percent of the PCIe switch market share, and providing standardized access to their on-chip instrumentation demonstrates a commitment to PCB manufacturing excellence for their customers.”