Advantest launches Real-Time Data Infrastructure platform

Advantest formed ACS in 2020 with the mission of enabling an open solution ecosystem data platform. ACS RTDI is a real-time data infrastructure that securely collects, analyses, stores and monitors semiconductor test data to empower customers to automate the process of converting insights into actionable test decisions within milliseconds. This helps customers and partners reduce test time, optimise quality and reliability and enhance smart packaging.

“Advantest’s ACS RTDI platform turbocharges decision-making on test floor, while freeing test engineers from the tedium of having to search for needles in data haystacks,” said G. Dan Hutcheson, vice chair and senior fellow, TechInsights. “It lowers test cost with real-time test vector optimisation while lowering packaging cost by shifting left systematic final test failures to probe.”

“In the semiconductor test industry, it has historically taken multiple iterations to drive higher yields, improve quality and reliability, and achieve higher throughput and smart packaging. The current file-based approach is performed offline, taking days or even weeks to identify and resolve any issues,” said Michael Chang, vice president and general manager of ACS at Advantest. “We are pleased to be working with industry-leading data analytics partners to enable their cutting-edge applications into our RTDI™ platform. These partnerships enable customers to take advantage of new levels of data integrity and security across different test nodes and benefit from proven infrastructure solutions that will enable them to achieve new levels of operational efficiency.” 

The ACS RTDI platform integrates data sources across the entire IC manufacturing supply chain while employing low-latency edge computing and analytics in a secure True Zero Trust environment. This innovative infrastructure minimises the need for human intervention, streamlining overall data utilisation across multiple insertions and supporting customers’ databases. Because cyber security remains a top concern among customers, the ACS RTDI platform was architected to be reliable and safe, ensuring hassle-free OS revisions, which protects data from unauthorised access or loss by leveraging True Zero Trust. Overall, the new ACS ecosystem will enable customers to boost quality, yield, and operational efficiencies, and to accelerate product development and new product introductions for years to come.

Partner endorsements

• PDF Solutions - We are excited to collaborate with Advantest ACS on the launch of the ACS RTDI™ platform,” said Said Akar, GM, Exensio Analytics at PDF Solutions. “This platform strengthens the joint cloud-to-edge architecture, while utilising Exensio advanced analytics applications to address semiconductor industry use cases targeting quality, test time and yield.”
• proteanTecs - “We see immense value in collaborating with Advantest to bring deep data Edge analytics to semiconductor test,” said Uzi Baruch, Chief Strategy Officer, proteanTecs. “Available in the ACS Solution Store, our proteanTecs Edge applications enable mutual customers to discover insights and take action around key metrics, including latent defect detection, power reduction, performance tuning, and 2.5/3D interconnect monitoring.”
• Synopsys - “Our close collaboration with Advantest will provide mutual customers with efficient access to Synopsys’ ACS RTDI-compatible analytics applications,” said Steve Pateras, Vice President of Marketing, Hardware Analytics and Test at Synopsys. “The availability of Synopsys Silicon.da real-time production analytics applications enables the ACS ecosystem to improve key chip production metrics such as quality, yield and throughput, while also improving key silicon operational metrics such as chip power and performance.”