Two very important macro trendsare emerging in the test and measurement space:
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- Compact, powerful and dedicated
- Intelligent and automated
Tablets, PCs and powerful smartphones are the new de facto standard for personal devices. Inspired by these devices, a new breed of test equipment boasting ultra-high performance and affordability is in the making.
The most popular fiber-optic test tool is currently an OTDR. The previous wave of small, cheap OTDRs were handheld devices, similar in shape and form to power meters; however, their size and resolution are a huge limitation in both construction and high-volume testing.
Intelligence and automation are key considerations for the next wave of OTDRs. In today?s context, where technicians may need to employ several types of configurations in a single day, training is a luxury that many telecom companies can no longer afford.
This brings us to tablet technology, the culmination of intelligence and automation. As opposed to semi-automation, otherwise known as ?make-believe? automation, tablets boast of ultra-high performance and click-and-go operation, making them ready for anything technicians or the field throw their way.
Compact OTDR is already here, but will soon combine variants such as power, affordability and intelligent automation?all within a single unit. This combined with cloud computing opens up new horizons of test and measurement capabilities.
In fact, cloud computing, when applied to test and monitoring equipment, allows such powerful capabilities as data mining, automatic upgrades, software and features on demand, asset management, and much more. Cloud-based solutions add value to test gear in delivering operational efficiencies is a key trend.
