What is test stand ? Why is it used, how to get going ?

[systemcrash]

Hello All,

I am LabVIEW user and very new to test stand, have few basic questions,

1. Why teststand was introduced ?

2. In LabVIEW we write VI's and build a project to execute a big task, how is this done in teststand?

3. I did download some of the pdf from NI website, but not able to visualise what needs to be done,

Pls do share if you have more insight to Teststand.

Thanks

[~jiggawax~]

Hey systemcrash,

I will try and answer your questions the best I can:

1. https://www.ni.com/en/shop/electronic-test-instrumentation/application-software-for-electronic-test-...

TestStand is an automated test executive (ATE).  It is an off the shelf solution which makes your life easier.  It handles report generation, user management, sequencing (i.e. test flow), result collection, pass/fail analysis, common User Interface, database logging, etc...  Basically, all the crap you don't want to develop in LabVIEW.  But it gives you consistency and commonality for all your tests.  If you look at the layers of the test system TestStand would be at the top like this:

TestStand

LabVIEW (or other software)

Hardware Drivers

Instruments

UUT (unit under test)

2. In TestStand you have the development environment (Sequence Editor) and the User Interface.  They can both execute tests.  The User Interface is an application written in LabVIEW (or other programming languages, ships with TestStand) which gets deployed to a test station so that testers can execute your test.  It does not have the ability to edit the test (in TestStand tests are called Sequence Files).  However, the Sequence Editor can edit the tests and would be used on the development machine.  There is a deployment utility in TestStand which allows you to create an installer.  In that installer you would include the TestStand Engine, the User Interface and all the dependencies for your test (Sequence File).  Then the user just opens the User Interface and runs it.

3. NI does offer TestStand courses which can be helpful.  I recommend going through these PDFs though first:

https://www.ni.com/docs/en-US/bundle/373200c/resource/373200c.pdf

https://www.ni.com/docs/en-US/bundle/323436a/resource/323436a.pdf

You will get more out of the classes if you have starting playing around with it first.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

[Callie]

There are more recent versions of these manuals:

https://www.ni.com/docs/en-US/bundle/375070c/resource/375070c.pdf
https://www.ni.com/docs/en-US/bundle/teststand/page/getting-started-with-teststand.html

Callie Jones

TestStand Documentation Team

[RayFarmer]

1. TestStand was introduced as a replacement to the LabVIEW / LabWindowsCVI  TestExecutive software back in 2000(ish). TestStand has a lot more flexibility over the old LabVIEW / LabWindows programs.