The Testing Blog

NTS is pleased to welcome two new locations to our family of test and engineering laboratories. The first, Ingenium Testing of Rockford, IL, was announced on July 21, 2011. The new NTS Rockford is a full-service EMI and EMC engineering and testing facility, spanning over 83,000 square feet on a 5 acre lot. Click here to learn more about NTS Rockford.

Our second new addition was announced on September 1. Lightning Technologies, located in western Massachusetts in the town of Pittsfield, is one of the most complete lightning-simulation laboratories in the world and ranks as an international leader in the development of sophisticated lightning protection systems for customers. Click here to learn more about NTS Pittsfield.

National Technical Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: NTSC) (NTS), a leading provider of engineering services, is pleased to announce that on April 6, 2011, the Telecommunications Certification Body (TCB) Council elected Mark Briggs, Staff Engineer at NTS, Chairperson of its Board of Directors.

TCB’s are accredited organizations with the authority to issue Grants of Certification for compliance with Federal Communications Commission Rules & Regulations. The purpose of the TCB council is to provide a forum for periodic dialogue between the FCC and the TCB’s and to facilitate on-going activities geared toward the improvement of TCB technical and administrative performance. Mark’s election to Chair of the TCB Council Board is a reflection of his deep technical expertise and the great respect he holds among his peers on the Council and within the wireless industry at large.

“I am very honored to be nominated to the position of TCB Council Board Chair. This is an interesting and exciting time and there many important issues before the council. I hope to continue the excellent work done by the outgoing Board under Chair Greg Kiemel, and look forward to working with the new Executive Committee.” Mr. Briggs said.

Mark initially became a member of the Board of Directors in February 2010. In the recent elections for a new board, Mark was nominated for the position of Chair and his appointment was made public on Wednesday, April 6th. His term will be two years, 2011-2013. As Chairman of the TCB Council Board of Directors, Mark will be responsible for setting the agenda, overseeing the Council’s ongoing activities and hosting periodic meetings and open forums.

Testing of Faster, More Robust MoCA 2.0 Products Coming Soon

Calabasas, CA (August 17, 2010)…National Technical Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: NTSC) (NTS), a leading provider of engineering services, announced today that the Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA®) has extended its agreement with NTS to be the exclusive worldwide testing laboratory for MoCA product certifications for an additional 2 years.

Read more here.

Critical EMC Concepts for Meeting Radiated Immunity Requirements Seminar
An examination and discussion of the nature of external EMC influences, product enclosure design and physical artifacts of the chassis i.e. shielding and various design compromises, effects of system cabling and interconnection, external interface port design and RF referencing of supporting circuitry, and resident internal design structures that would assist/weaken external interface ports. Includes coverage of troubleshooting techniques to quickly characterize the specific issue, isolating the circuit function affected, identify point(s) of entry and transmission mechanism(s), and determining mode of propagation along with effective mitigation techniques. Visit the events page for more information and to register.

NTS Test Systems Engineering Division to Develop Automated Test Equipment (ATE) for the Boeing 777 Program

Calabasas, CA (July 7, 2010)…National Technical Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: NTSC) (NTS), a leading provider of engineering services, announced today that its Test Systems Engineering Division has been selected by The Boeing Company to provide Automated Test Equipment (ATE) systems in support of its 777 Program.  The ATE systems will perform tests on 777 systems, avionics and engines using automation to quickly perform measurements and evaluate the test results.

Via: NTS News

National Technical Systems (NTS) Completes ZigBee Smart Energy Certification Testing for SimpleHomeNet Appliance
Rapidly Expanding Smart Grid Compliance Testing Market Is Key NTS Initiative

CALABASAS, Calif., June 4, 2010 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ –National Technical Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: NTSC) (NTS), a leading provider of engineering services, announced today that it recently completed ZigBee Smart Energy certification testing for a feature-rich, wireless electric load controller manufactured by SimpleHomeNet, a division of Compacta International. The tests were run at the NTS laboratory in Culver City, CA. Following completion of the certification tests, the ZigBee Alliance reviewed the test results submitted by NTS and the application submitted by SimpleHomeNet and certified the load controller.
NTS is the market leader in ZigBee smart energy certification testing and one of only three companies worldwidewith rights designated by the ZigBee Alliance to test wireless products for ZigBee Smart Energy certification. Completion of the certification tests for SimpleHomeNet is another example of NTS’ expanding leadership in the burgeoning testing market for ZigBee Smart Energy.
ZigBee Smart Energy is the market leading wireless home area network (HAN) standard with more than 40 million smart meters being installed around the world. Last year, it was selected by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) as an initial interoperable standard for HAN devices. ZigBee has also been adopted by over 350 global manufacturers andthere is a large total potential market of 1.5 billion devices that could be installed in homes worldwide for energy management and demand response, according to a recently published report by ON World.
Smart energy device testing is a rapidly expanding global industry and a growing market for NTS,said NTS Chief Executive Office William McGinnis. The U.S. Department of Energy has allocated $30 billion as part of a national energy initiative backed by national utility companies, which is expected toencourage the development and certification of a broad range of smart energy products McGinnis said.
ZigBee Smart Energy certification demonstrates that a wireless product such as a load controller, or other wireless device, is compliant with the ZigBee Smart Energy standard that was created by energy experts and ZigBee Alliance members. ZigBee members include Ember, Freescale, Texas Instruments, Landis & Gyr, Itron, Cisco, General Electric, Honeywell, Intel, Mitsubishi Electric Corp., Philips, Samsung Electronics, Siemens, Sony and many other leading corporations around the world.
“This is already a large, rapidly growing market and an expanding list of companies is committed to the smart energy path, which we believe is a good opportunity for us,” McGinnis added. “We not only provide the test services, but we also design the test tools to simulate the functions of the appliances that allow our clients to do self-testing. We have a full solution for our clients with software testing and validation and multiple engineering services.”
Remotely controlled, wireless appliances such as thermostats, meters, load controllers, pool pumps, water heaters and display units designed for homeowners as part of a HAN are key components of a smart grid created to reduce energy usage, increase reliability and cut costs for consumers, said NTS Chief Technology Officer Osman Sakr. The NTS testing demonstrates that the appliances work together properly and can accurately show how much energy is being used, thereby allowing a consumer to manage energy efficiently.
Al Choperena, President and CEO of Compacta International, said the NTS testing and ZigBee Smart Energy certification of its load controller “is a key milestone in our ZigBee product roadmap and signals our strong commitment to the future of the smart grid. To date, our certification efforts have been on track thanks to our ongoing partnership with NTS.”

The M82 Percussion Primer is employed to initiate the propelling charges of separately loaded artillery weapon systems. Unique to the 155 mm M777 Light Weight Howitzer weapon system design is the use of a magazine assembly mounted in the breach mechanism of the howitzer in which ten M82 percussion primers are loaded. This design allows the primers to experience shock loadings associated with multiple howitzer firings. To address concerns as to the potential impact this shock environment may have on the sensitivity of the percussion primers in the Marine Corps inventory, the Expeditionary Systems Evaluation Division of NSWC Crane, in concert with National Technical Systems (NTS) Ordnance Sciences department, conducted tests to characterize the pyrotechnic shock imparted to the magazine assembly of the M777 howitzer during weapon system firings and then used this data to develop a series of laboratory tests to characterize changes in the sensitivity of the M82 Percussion Primer as a result of multiple exposures to these shock environments. This work was done in support of the Program Manager for Ammunition of the Marine Corps System Command service life accelerated age testing program. The paper “Pyrotechnic Shock Loading of the M82 Percussion Primer in the M777 Light Weight Howitzer Magazine Assembly” will be presented at the NDIA Joint Armaments Conference being held in Dallas, TX, May 17 through 20, 2010. NTS will be exhibiting in booth 521.

Climatic, Environmental and Dynamics Testing Capabilities Added To Portfolio of Services
NTS Silicon Valley division is adding a new custom-built Climatic, Environmental and Dynamics Product Testing Laboratory in close proximity to their existing test laboratories in Fremont and Sunnyvale, California. The new location is over 30,000 square feet, and will house a wide range of state-of-the-art testing equipment.

More details can be found in the NTS press release.

The FCC has announced that it has currently halted issuing new and any Class 2 Permissive Change certifications that require a DFS evaluation for Master devices until further notice. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is currently investigating interference with UNII Master Devices and the FCC. Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS), a mechanism to allow unlicensed devices to share spectrum with existing radar systems is mandated in the 5250-5350 and 5470-5725 MHz UNII bands.

Elliott Laboratories continues to test Master devices and is currently awaiting on further updates from the FCC. For more information, please contact us via email at info@elliottlabs.com or at 408-245-7800.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a $7,000 forfeiture against Sennheiser Electronic Corporation for willful and repeated violation of Section 302(b) of the Communications Act of 1934; the apparent violation involves Sennheiser’s marketing of unauthorized radio frequency devices.

In July 2008, the Enforcement Bureau Spectrum Enforcement Division began an investigation into Sennheiser’s marketing of wireless microphones. In a letter of inquiry dated August 15, 2008, the Division instructed Sennheiser to provide specific information regarding the manufacture, marketing, and the certification status of the wireless microphone systems it sells. In its September 15, 2008, response to the letter of inquiry, Sennheiser indicates that, while preparing its response, it discovered that one of its wireless microphones did not have a valid certification.

Readers can view the FCC notice by clicking here.