RFIC Test Software 20.0 Readme

July 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 20.0, and known issues.

Overview

System Requirements

Supported Operating Systems

Application Software Support

Driver and Add-On Requirements

Installation Instructions

Product Security and Critical Updates

New Features

Supported Hardware

Accessing the APIs

Finding Examples

Accessing the Help

Known Issues

Bug Fixes

Automating the Installation of NI Products

Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 10

Using 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.

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

NI recommends the following requirements:

  • Processor—Intel i5 or equivalent
  • 4 GB RAM*
  • A screen resolution of 1,600 x 1,200

* 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 20.0 supports Windows 10/8.11/7 SP12 and is available only in 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.

Application Software Support

RFIC Test Software supports the following application software versions, including service packs. If you are not using NI application software, refer to Microsoft Visual Studio Support.

Note  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.

Application SoftwareVersions Supported by RFIC Test Software
LabVIEW 64-bit of 2017, 2017 SP1, 2018, 2018 SP1, 2019, 2019 SP1, and 2020
Microsoft Visual Studio 2017 and later
TestStand 2019

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:

Note  NI recommends using the latest available version.

  • NI-RFSG 19.2.1 or later
  • NI-RFSA 19.2.1 or later
  • NI-FGEN 19.5.1 or later
  • NI-DCPower 19.5.0 or later
  • NI-SCOPE 19.5 or later
  • NI-RFmx SpecAn 19.1 or later
  • NI-RFmx Demod 19.1 or later
  • NI-RFmx LTE 19.1¹ or later
  • NI-RFmx NR 19.1¹ or later
  • NI-RFmx WLAN 19.1¹ or later
  • NI-RFSG Playback Library 19.1 or later
  • (Optional) RF Power Amplifier Linearizer 1.6 or later²

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 SFP.

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/security to view and subscribe to receive security notifications about NI products. Visit ni.com/critical-updates for information about critical updates from NI.

New Features

RFIC Test Software 20.0 includes the following new features:

  • Support for impedance tuning using Focus Microwaves load pull tuners
  • Support for frequency sweep testing
  • Support for NanoSemi dual-band DPD measurements. You must install the RF Power Amplifier Linearizer 2.0 or later and have a valid license. Use NI Package Manager to install the RF Power Amplifier Linearizer.

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

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 and NanoSemi Dual Band VIs are available in LabVIEW from the Functions»User Libraries»NanoSemi Linearizer and NanoSemi Dual Band palettes.

.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\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\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\IVI Foundation\IVI\Bin\niETSync_64.dll.

You can use the Power Servo C dynamically linked library by adding a reference to: Program Files\IVI Foundation\IVI\Bin\niVSTPowerServo_64.dll.

RFIC Test SFP

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

Finding Examples

In RFIC Test Software 19.2 and later, examples for LabVIEW, .NET, and TestStand are available via the RFIC Test Automation Wizard, accessible from Start»National Instruments»RFIC Test Automation Wizard.

In RFIC Test Software 19.1 and earlier, examples for LabVIEW and .NET are referred to as "Legacy Examples" and accessible from Start»National Instruments»RFIC Legacy Examples.

Accessing the Help

Refer to the RFIC Test Software User Manual located at Start»National Instruments»RFIC Documentation. The manual includes the following information:

  • RFIC Test Soft Front Panel information and examples
  • How to get started with the Test Automation Wizard
  • How to configure hardware for use with the ETSync API and reference for the ETSync VIs
  • Theory of operation information on power servoing and reference for the Power Servo VIs

For information about your device, such as how to getting started, technical specifications, and calibration instructions, refer to the documentation for your device. For the most recent revisions of documentation and for newly released documentation, visit ni.com/manuals.

Known Issues

You can access the software and documentation known issues list online. Visit RFIC Test Software 20.0 Known Issues for an up-to-date list of known issues.

Bug Fixes

The following items are the IDs and titles of a subset of issues fixed in RFIC Test Software. This is not an exhaustive list of issues fixed in the current version of RFIC Test Software. If you have a Bug ID, you can search this list to validate that the issue has been fixed.

ID Fixed Issue
1041903 [RFIC Test Soft Front Panel] NR TDD AMPM not working properly. When Idle Duration Present is TRUE, NanoSemi DPD iteration fails.
1013545 [RFIC Test Soft Front Panel] RFIC Test SFP 19.2 crashes during NanoSemi DPD.

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 4.6.2, 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 4.6.2 separately before you install NI software.

For more information about automating the installation of NI products, refer to Automating an Installer in the NI Package Manager manual.

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 (64-Bit) and Windows Server 2008 in 2021

RFIC Test Software will drop support for Windows 7 (64-bit) and Windows Server 2008 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.


Legal Information

Copyright

© 2004–2020 National Instruments. All rights reserved.

Under the copyright laws, this publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, storing in an information retrieval system, or translating, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of National Instruments Corporation.

NI respects the intellectual property of others, and we ask our users to do the same. NI software is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws. Where NI software may be used to reproduce software or other materials belonging to others, you may use NI software only to reproduce materials that you may reproduce in accordance with the terms of any applicable license or other legal restriction.

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.

U.S. Government Restricted Rights

If you are an agency, department, or other entity of the United States Government ("Government"), the use, duplication, reproduction, release, modification, disclosure or transfer of the technical data included in this manual is governed by the Restricted Rights provisions under Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.227-14 for civilian agencies and Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement Section 252.227-7014 and 252.227-7015 for military agencies.

IVI Foundation Copyright Notice

Content from the IVI specifications reproduced with permission from the IVI Foundation.

The IVI Foundation and its member companies make no warranty of any kind with regard to this material, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. The IVI Foundation and its member companies shall not be liable for errors contained herein or for incidental or consequential damages in connection with the furnishing, performance, or use of this material.

Trademarks

Refer to the NI Trademarks and Logo Guidelines at ni.com/trademarks for information on NI trademarks. Other product and company names mentioned herein are trademarks or trade names of their respective companies.

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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