RFIC Test Software 19.2 Readme

February 2020

This file contains important information about RFIC Test Software, including new features, supported hardware, a partial list of bugs fixed for RFIC Test Software 19.2, and known issues.

Overview

New Features

Supported Hardware

System Requirements

Supported Operating Systems

Application Software Support

Driver and Add-On Requirements

Accessing the APIs

Finding Examples

Accessing the Documentation

Installation Instructions

Product Security and Critical Updates

Known Issues

Bug Fixes

Automating the Installation of NI Products

How to Use NI Software with Microsoft Windows 10

How to Use NI Software with Microsoft Windows 8.1

RFIC Test Software Drops Support for Windows 7 (64-Bit) and Windows Server 2008 in 2021

Legal Information


Overview

RFIC Test Software enables you to explore testing advanced RF integrated circuit (RFIC) devices featuring envelope tracking (ET), digital predistortion (DPD), and hardware-accelerated power servoing. Available measurements include adjacent channel power (ACP), spectral emission mask (SEM), error vector magnitude (EVM), AM-to-AM, and AM-to-PM. To set up measurements for your device, use the installed examples or the RFIC Test Soft Front Panel (SFP).

The getting started guide for your device provides information about how to install, configure, test, and begin using your hardware.

New Features

RFIC Test Software 19.2:

  • Power Servo done now exposed as UserSignal2
  • Updated Power Servo to use LabVIEW Runtime 2019 SP1 for improved Semiconductor Test System support
  • Support for NI-RFSA 19.2.1

RFIC Test Software 19.1:

  • New RFIC Test Automation Wizard providing LabVIEW and .NET TestStand examples for 5G New Radio (NR), Wireless local area network (WLAN), and Long-Term Evolution (LTE) applications
  • Support for MATLAB custom DPD script in the RFIC Soft Front Panel and RFIC legacy examples
  • Interactive, multi-device debugging capabilities now described in the RFIC Test Software Manual
  • Support for NI-RFSA 19.2

RFIC Test Software 19.0:

  • Support for PXIe-5830 Vector Signal Transceiver intermediate frequency (IF)
  • Support for PXIe-5831 Vector Signal Transceiver, including IF
  • Support for downlink test model definitions with 5G NR downlink measurements
  • Support for the Automatic SG SA Shared LO property via RFmx and Automatic LO offset using NI-RFSG Playback Library
  • Support for NanoSemi Linearizer 1.6 (nst_dpd_train_without_align) in combination with RFmx DPD alignment
  • Support for NI-RFSA 19.0
  • RFIC Test Soft Front Panel updates
    • Removed dependency on the RFmx WLAN
    • Added measurement results for each DPD iteration to the summary table

RFIC Test Software 3.0:

  • Support for 5G NR
  • Support for NanoSemi Linearizer
  • New extensions framework for the PXIe-5840 Vector Signal Transceiver FPGA bitfile

RFIC Test Software 2.5:

  • Improvements to the WLAN examples
  • New measurement series (power sweep) examples
  • New LTE downlink measurement example
  • New power amplifier enable (PAEN) signal generation examples
  • Support for NI-RFSA 18.1
  • RFIC Test Soft Front Panel updates
    • Support for measurement series (power sweep)
    • Support for LTE downlink measurements

RFIC Test Software 2.3:

  • Support for the PXIe-5820 Vector Signal Transceiver as the arbitrary waveform generator in ET examples
  • Support for NI-RFSA 17.1
  • RFIC Test Soft Front Panel updates
    • Support for the PXIe-5820 as the arbitrary waveform generator in ET mode
    • Improvements to DPD
    • Support for performing crest factor reduction (CFR) on reference and DPD waveforms
    • Support for performing Vcc sourcing and system DC current, voltage, and power-added efficiency (PAE) measurements
    • Support for performing WLAN 802.11ax measurements
  • Updated to new installer system

RFIC Test Software 2.2:

  • New LabVIEW measurement example for WLAN 802.11ax
  • Support for TDMS file version 2.0

RFIC Test Software 2.1:

  • Support for the PXIe-5840

    Note  This release provides no official support for WLAN measurements using the PXIe-5840.

  • Support for ETSync 2.0 (PXIe-5646 Vector Signal Transceiver only)

RFIC Test Software 2.0:

  • Support for performing LTE uplink (UL) EVM, ACP, and SEM measurements
  • Support for performing wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) EVM, ACP, and SEM measurements
  • New LabVIEW measurement examples for LTE, WCDMA, time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA), CDMA2000, Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO), Global System for Mobile Communications Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (GSM-EDGE), and WLAN
  • Support for performing PAE measurements using NI-Scope
  • Support for using detrough shaping functions for ET
  • Support for .NET programming languages

Supported Hardware

The following table shows which hardware products are supported in RFIC Test Software. The following hardware products are supported in all operating systems listed in the Supported Operating Systems section.


Hardware Product Hardware Model Application
Vector Signal Transceiver PXIe-5646
Hardware-accelerated power servoing
PXIe-5830
PXIe-5831
PXIe-5840
PXIe-5841
PXIe-5820
Envelope waveform generation when testing ET devices under test (DUTs)
Waveform Generator PXIe-5451
Envelope waveform generation when testing ET DUTs
Note  For DEVM measurements, use the PXIe-5820.
Oscilloscope PXIe-5162
  • PAE measurements
  • (Optional) Recommended for envelope waveform/delay analysis when testing ET DUTs
PXIe-5185
PXIe-5186
Source Measure Unit PXIe-4139
(Optional) Vcc sourcing and system PAE measurements
PXIe-414x

System Requirements

RFIC Test Software has the following minimum requirements:

  • Processor—Intel Pentium 4 or equivalent
  • 1 GB RAM*
  • A screen resolution of 1,024 x 768 with 256 colors
  • Windows 10/8.1/7, with all available critical updates and service packs

NI recommends the following requirements:

  • Processor—Intel i5 or equivalent
  • 4 GB RAM*
  • A screen resolution of 1,600 x 1,200
  • Windows 10/8.1/7, with all available critical updates and service packs

* Depending on the amount of data acquired and/or processed a larger amount of memory may be required.

Note  Guest accounts are not supported under any OS.

Supported Operating Systems

RFIC Test Software 19.2 supports Windows 10/8.11/72 (64-bit).

1 NI software installs VC2015 Runtime and .NET 4.6.2. Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 require Microsoft updates to support these items. Refer to Microsoft KB2919442 and KB2919355 for more information about how to install these updates.

2 NI software is signed with a SHA-256 certificate. Windows 7 SP1, Windows Embedded Standard 7 SP1, and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 require Microsoft updates to support SHA-256. Refer to Microsoft KB3033929 for more information about how to install this security update.

Note  Refer to RFIC Test Software Drops Support for Windows 7 (32- and 64-Bit), Windows Server 2008 R2, and All 32-Bit Windows Operating Systems in 2021 for information about future OS support.

Application Software Support

RFIC Test Software supports the following application software versions, including service packs. You should install application software, such as LabVIEW or Microsoft Visual Studio®, before installing RFIC Test Software. To add support for application software installed after installing RFIC Test Software, modify your RFIC Test Software installation or launch the RFIC Test Software installer again. If you are not using NI application software, refer to Microsoft Visual Studio Support.

Application SoftwareVersions Supported by RFIC Test Software
LabVIEW 64-bit of 2016, 2017 SP1, 2018 SP1, or 2019 SP1
Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 SP1 and later
TestStand 2019 and later

Note  RFIC Test Software will not operate correctly without the service packs previously mentioned.

Microsoft Visual Studio Support

If you are using the RFIC Test Software .NET Class Library, .NET Framework 4.5 (minimum) is required.

To use the .NET API, you must install the .NET class libraries or the .NET wrapper in addition to the NI device driver. For information about versions of the .NET Framework and the drivers each supports, as well as the download location of the installer files, refer to National Instruments .NET Driver Support.

Driver and Add-On Requirements

RFIC Test Software requires the following driver and add-on versions:

  • NI-RFSG 19.2.1
  • NI-RFSA 19.2.1
  • NI-FGEN 19.5.1
  • NI-DCPower 19.5.0
  • NI-SCOPE 19.5
  • NI-RFmx SpecAn 19.1
  • NI-RFmx Demod 19.1
  • NI-RFmx LTE 19.1¹
  • NI-RFmx NR 19.1¹
  • NI-RFmx WLAN 19.1¹
  • NI-RFSG Playback Library 19.1
  • (Optional) NanoSemi Linearizer 1.6²

¹ Installation and licensing are only required for standard-specific measurements.

² Requires a valid license.

Note  The run-time versions of these products are sufficient to run the RFIC Test Soft Front Panel.

Accessing the APIs

LabVIEW

ETSync VIs are available in LabVIEW from the Functions»Addons»ET palette.

Power Servo VIs are available in LabVIEW from the Functions»User Libraries»NI Power Servoing IP palette.

NanoSemi Linearizer VIs are available in LabVIEW from the Functions»User Libraries»NanoSemi Linearizer palette.

.NET Framework

You can use the ETSync .NET Class library by adding a reference to niETSync.cs, niETUtil.cs, and niFGEN.cs from C:\Users\Public\Documents\National Instruments\NI-ETSync\DotNET Wrappers\CS\ and any dependent class libraries from within the Solution Explorer in Visual Studio.

You can use the Power Servo .NET Class library by adding a reference to niVSTPowerServo.cs, niRFSA.cs, and niInteropCommon.cs from C:\Users\Public\Documents\National Instruments\FPGA Power Servo\DotNET Wrappers\CS\ and any dependent class libraries from within the Solution Explorer in Visual Studio.

C

You can use the ETSync C dynamically linked library by adding a reference to: Program Files (x86)\IVI Foundation\IVI\Bin\niETsync_32.dll for 32-bit development or Program Files\IVI Foundation\IVI\Bin\niETSync_64.dll for 64-bit development.

You can use the Power Servo C dynamically linked library by adding a reference to: Program Files (x86)\IVI Foundation\IVI\Bin\niVSTPowerServo_32.dll for 32-bit development or Program Files\IVI Foundation\IVI\Bin\niVSTPowerServo_64.dll for 64-bit development.

RFIC Test SFP

To launch the RFIC Test SFP, navigate to Start»National Instruments»RFIC Test Soft Front Panel.

Finding Examples

Examples for LabVIEW, .NET and Teststand are available via the RFIC Test Automation Wizard (Start»National Instruments»RFIC Test Automation Wizard).

Examples from previous releases for LabVIEW and .NET are now "Legacy Examples" accessible from Start»National Instruments»RFIC Legacy Examples.

Accessing the Documentation

Documentation for RFIC Test Software is located at Start»All Programs»National Instruments»RFIC Documentation. The documentation set is composed of the following documents.

Document Format Description
RFIC Test Software Manual PDF Contains primary help content for RFIC Test Software products. The manual includes the following information:
  • How to get started with the Test Automation Wizard
  • RFIC Test Soft Front Panel information and examples
Getting Started Guide for your device Printed and PDF Contains software and hardware installation, MAX configuration, signal connection, and troubleshooting information for your device.
Specifications for your device PDF Lists technical specifications for your device.
Calibration Procedure for your device PDF Contains calibration instructions for your device.
RFIC Test Software Readme HTML (this document) Contains information about supported hardware and operating systems, new features, fixed issues, and legal notices.
ETSync API Reference PDF Contains information about configuring hardware for use with the ETSync API and a complete reference for ETSync VIs, properties, and functions.
Power Servoing IP Reference PDF Contains theory of operation information on power servoing and a complete reference for Power Servo VIs, properties, and functions.

For the most recent revisions of documentation and for newly released documentation, visit ni.com/manuals.

Note  To view PDFs, you need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed. You can install the viewer from www.adobe.com/acrobat.

Installation Instructions

NI installs RFIC Test Software using NI Package Manager. If you do not already have NI software installed, RFIC Test Software installs NI Package Manager to handle the installation of your NI software. Visit ni.com/r/NIPMDownload to download NI Package Manager. Refer to the NI Package Manager Manual for more information about installing, removing, and upgrading NI software using NI Package Manager.

Product Security and Critical Updates

Visit ni.com/critical-updates for information about critical updates and security notifications from National Instruments.

Known Issues

You can access the software and documentation known issues list online. Visit RFIC Test Software 19.2 Known Issues for an up-to-date list of known issues.

Bug Fixes

RFIC Test Software

The following items are a subset of issues fixed between RFIC Test Software revisions. This section is not an exhaustive list of issues fixed in the current version of RFIC Test Software.

RFIC Test Software 19.1

  • Fixed an issue where the updated reference waveform was not applied for multiple DPD iterations.

RFIC Test Software 19.0.2

  • Fixed an issue in the Initialize function of the Power Servo LabVIEW API which could cause multi-threading safety issues.

RFIC Test Software 19.0.1

  • Fixed an issue in the LabVIEW example (RFIC Msmt Example NanoSemi CFR + DPD + AMPM.vi) for bursted waveforms by considering burst information from the waveform file for the alignment procedure.

RFIC Test Software 19.0

  • Corrected export behavior of the reference trigger in conjunction with Power Servo.
  • Fixed an issue where the Power Servo C interface sometimes failed with a time-out error when running in a loop.

RFIC Test Software 3.0

  • Fixed an issue where errors prevented LabVIEW measurement examples from closing sessions and required restarting your device.

RFIC Test Software 2.5

  • Fixed an issue where using the PXIe-5668 Vector Signal Analyzer in the WLAN shipping example caused a configuration error.
  • Fixed an issue in which the wrong number of waveform samples for the arbitrary waveform generator in the WLAN DEVM example resulted in an error.
  • Fixed an issue where the Power Servo function declaration did not match in the Power Servo wrapper, niVSTPowerServo.cs, and the header files, niVSTPowerServo_[32/64].h.

RFIC Test Software 2.3.1

  • Fixed an issue where the dynamic link library (DLL) load failed in the ETSync API.
  • Fixed an internal error in the installer.

RFIC Test Software 2.3

  • Fixed an issue in which trigger conditions on PXIe-5840 were unstable in the FPGA Power Servo.
  • Fixed an issue with the behavior of Abort VI in case of incoming errors in the FPGA Power Servo.
  • Fixed an issue where servo measurement time on the PXIe-5840 was calculated incorrectly in the FPGA Power Servo.
  • Fixed an issue with the behavior of Abort VI in case of incoming errors in the ETSync API.
  • Fixed an issue in which the DPD Target Gain Type property calculated the Peak Power Adjustment incorrectly after DPD.

RFIC Test Software 2.2

  • Fixed an issue where the RFSG Playback Library was used incorrectly.
  • Fixed an issue where TDMS file versions were not compatible.
  • Fixed an issue where deprecated DPD API VIs were used.

RFIC Test Software 2.1

  • Fixed an issue where the TD-SCDMA midamble shift was mishandled in the TD-SCDMA example and corresponding example waveform.
  • Fixed an issue where the AMPM Phase Error Range returned an incorrect result.
  • Fixed an issue where the AMPM Mean Error Range did not return a result.

RFIC Test Software 2.0

  • Fixed an issue where an incorrect signal was generated if the user-defined sampling rate for AMPM/DPD differed from the sampling rate of the test waveform.

RFIC Test SFP

The following items are a subset of issues fixed between RFIC Test SFP revisions. This section is not an exhaustive list of issues fixed in the current version of RFIC Test SFP.

RFIC Test SFP 19.2

  • Fixed an issue where saving measurement results without DPD enabled caused an error.

RFIC Test SFP 19.0.1

  • Fixed an issue with version handling for NanoSemi Linearizer 1.6 for RFmx alignment support (call into NanoSemi "without aligment" function).
  • Fixed an issue when using DPD bursted waveforms with NanoSemi Linearizer by adding burst detection for the alignment procedure.

RFIC Test SFP 3.0

  • Fixed an issue where configuring multiple LTE DL subblocks lead to an error during ACP measurements.
  • Fixed an issue in which ACP Offset channel traces were invisible due to poor contrast with the background.
  • Fixed an issue where the ACP result summary listed the same offset multiple times if multiple subblocks were configured.
  • Fixed an issue where the PFI output would only active the first time after configuration when using the static PFI mode to trigger an amplifier.

RFIC Test SFP 2.5

  • Fixed an issue where the pre-DPD and post-DPD output powers were not consistent.
  • Fixed an issue where the SFP would crash when the current limit for the SMU was exceeded.
  • Fixed an issue where the SFP would crash when attempting to save waveforms in a directory that did not exist.

Automating the Installation of NI Products

You can automate the installation of most NI products using command-line arguments to suppress some or all of the installer user interface and dialog boxes.

If the NI product you are installing uses Microsoft .NET 4.0, the .NET installer may run before any NI software installs and may require a reboot before the installation of NI software begins. To avoid a .NET reboot, install .NET 4.0 separately before you install NI software.

For more information about automating the installation of NI products, refer to the following KnowledgeBase articles:

Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 10

Microsoft Windows 10 is the latest version of the Windows operating system and features significant changes compared to previous versions. Windows 10 introduces several new capabilities and also combines features from both Windows 7 and Windows 8. For more information about NI support for Windows 10, visit ni.com/windows10.

Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 8.1

When you install NI software on Microsoft Windows 8.1, you will notice a few additional tiles in the Apps view, including shortcuts to NI application software products such as NI LabVIEW, Measurement & Automation Explorer (NI MAX), and NI Launcher. For more information about NI support for Windows 8.1, visit ni.com/windows8.

RFIC Test Software Drops Support for Windows 7 (32- and 64-Bit), Windows Server 2008 R2, and All 32-Bit Windows Operating Systems in 2021

RFIC Test Software will drop support for Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008 R2, and all 32-bit Windows operating systems starting in 2021. Versions of this product that ship after May 1, 2021, may not install or execute correctly on these operating systems. For detailed information about NI operating system support, visit ni.com/r/win32bitsupport.

For detailed information about NI application software product life cycles, visit ni.com/info and enter one of the following Info Codes:

Product Info Code
LabVIEWlifecycle
LabWindows/CVIcvi_lifecycle
Measurement Studiomstudiolifecycle
TestStandtslcp
DIAdemddlcp
SignalExpressselcp
VeriStandnivslifecycle

Legal Information

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End-User License Agreements and Third-Party Legal Notices

You can find end-user license agreements (EULAs) and third-party legal notices in the following locations after installation:

  • Notices are located in the <National Instruments>\_Legal Information and <National Instruments> directories.
  • EULAs are located in the <National Instruments>\Shared\MDF\Legal\license directory.
  • Review <National Instruments>\_Legal Information.txt for information on including legal information in installers built with NI products.

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Patents

For patents covering the NI products/technology, refer to the appropriate location: Help»Patents in your software, the patents.txt file on your media, or the NI Patent Notice at ni.com/patents.

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