USB Compliance

Overview

Universal Serial Bus (USB) is currently the most popular connection technology for external peripherals in the world. From hard drives to digital cameras, from scanners to keyboards - USB can connect it all to your desktop or notebook personal computer. The Universal Serial Bus (USB) specification defines the product design targets at the level of interfaces and mechanisms. To complement the specification and enable measurement of compliance in real products, the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) has instituted a USB Compliance Program that provides reasonable measures of acceptability by allowing vendors to be certified by independent test labs or attend "plugfests" to get your products tested. You can now have your USB product tested and certified by an independent testing laboratory - NTS.

NTS Computer Testing Division performs USB compliance and certification testing as licensed by the USB-IF. NTS Computer Product Testing Division has also been certified to perform testing of USB high-speed hubs, add-in host controller cards, and systems for USB certification and compliance. You can also get your USB On-The-Go (OTG), Embedded Host (EH), and Wireless USB (WUSB) products tested for compliance at NTS. With the vast number of companies developing computers and peripherals, it is important to make sure that your product meets the industry standards.

NTS has years of experience testing a wide variety of USB and WUSB peripherals to all of the various USB specifications: USB Compliance (High-speed, full-speed and low-speed silicon, peripheral, and system/hub/host controller); USB On-The-Go Compliance Testing (High-speed and full-speed products); and USB Embedded Host Compliance Testing (High-speed and full-speed hosts). NTS has also been authorized to perform Wireless USB Compliance Testing. Our testing facilities in U.S., Japan, and Hong Kong (other labs coming soon!) can perform testing to make sure your products are compatible with the various USB specifications.

In addition, NTS offers the ability for you to attend your USB compliance testing at our facilities. This allows you to address any problems that may occur, allowing your company to quickly and easily make any necessary adjustments to become certified. NTS can also assist with USB Driver development and debugging (including electrical such as eye diagram, droop/drop, etc.) to address problematic issues. Let NTS help you get your latest USB product certified today!

Wireless USB (WUSB)

As of June 2008, NTS has been authorized to perform certification and compliance testing for the Wireless USB (WUSB) protocol. Wireless USB provides a short range wireless connection for USB devices (using WiMedia UltraWide Band [UWB] technology), and includes backwards compatibility with wired USB devices. It functions at 480Mb/s at 3 meters and 100Mb/s at 10 meters. NTS performs testing of Wireless USB products using the same test procedures which have been tested and refined at numerous USB "plugfests" over the past year. Testing is available for the following Wireless USB product types:

• Native device silicon
• Host Wire Adapter (HWA)
• Device Wire Adapter (DWA) end products
• Native host (WHCI)
• Device end-products
• Others TBD

NTS has the expertise to assist you in all of your Wireless USB testing. Contact us today to get your Wireless USB product tested and certified!

USB High/Full/Low Speed Devices & Systems

Testing is performed based on the USB-IF test plan, developed by the USB 2.0 Compliance Committee under the direction of the Core Team. The USB-IF test procedure documents a series of tests that are used to evaluate peripherals, hubs, and systems. The test procedures are performed to verify compliance with the USB requirements and specifications. The overall set of test procedures (currently) cover the following milestones for high/full/low-speed devices:

• Verify a USB device's general compliance to the rules of the Device Framework and evaluate the product's operation and interoperability under applicable versions of Microsoft Windows operating system(s), currently Windows XP.
• Verify the in-rush current characteristics and average power consumed.
• Verify upstream/downstream signal quality for the USB product.
• Verify voltage drop and droop in the power provided by the product.

USB-IF member can download the complete USB High-Speed and Full/Low-Speed Compliance Test Procedures from the USB-IF website. For the complete test specifications for low and full speed devices, download the USB-IF Full and Low Speed Compliance Test Procedure. For the complete test specifications for high-speed devices, download all of the USB-IF High Speed Test Procedures (Procedures restricted to download by USB members).

Although USB compliance testing is a necessary step in releasing a USB product, it's not enough for a USB device or hub manufacturer to simply prove that it has correctly followed the specification. To address these issues, NTS has developed a USB Golden Certification Suite program that goes beyond USB-IF compliance. It answers the questions regarding whose fault is it, how bad is it out there, will my product perform as expected, and will it be a success or a failure. NTS's testing coverage includes multiple operating systems, multiple host controllers, low-speed/full-speed/high-speed peripherals, and various platform chipsets.

USB On-The-Go

As everyone knows, portable devices are exploding in popularity. There's a growing need for these portable device to communicate to each other when a PC or notebook is not available. Based on the USB specifications, the USB On-The-Go (OTG) standard addresses this need for mobile interconnectivity that includes the following enhancements:

• Limited host capability to communicate with selected other USB peripherals
• A small USB connector to fit the mobile form factor
• Low power features to preserve battery life

To complement the specification and enable measurement of compliance and certification in real products, the USB-IF has instituted a Compliance Program that provides reasonable measures of acceptability. You now can have your OTG product tested and certified by NTS. Our Computer Products Testing Division performs USB OTG Compliance Testing as licensed by the USB-IF. We have been certified to perform testing of full-speed and high-speed OTG products.

NTS performs testing based on the OTG Test Plan, developed by the USB-IF Compliance Committee under the direction of the Core Team. The USB-IF Test procedure documents a series of tests that are used to evaluate Limited Capability Host/Device and Target Devices. The overall sets of test procedures currently cover physical inspection for:

• Mini-AB receptacle
• User interface display
• Signal Quality as a host (A-Device)
• Signal Quality as a device (B-Device)
• OTG Electrical Test (OET)
• OTG Protocol Test (OPT)
• USB 2.0 Full Speed

Although OTG Compliance testing is a necessary step in releasing an OTG product, it's not enough for a OTG device manufacturer to simply prove that it has correctly followed the specification. To address these issues, NTS has developed an OTG Golden Certification Suite program that goes beyond OTG compliance. It answers the questions regarding whose fault it is, how bad it is out there, will my product perform as expected, and will it be a success or failure. NTS's testing coverage includes multiple Limited Host/Device Capability silicon manufactures and Target Device manufacturers. NTS will perform peer-to-peer interoperability with a wide array of OTG products from the two groups. NTS has the expertise to assist you in all of your OTG testing requirements including Microsoft WHQL/DTM and USB 2.0 HS testing of devices and hubs.

If you're interested in USB testing, you may also be interested in other certifications, such as WHQL/DTM. Contact your NTS Account Manager for more information!

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