An instrument obsolescence replacement solution using a PXI-based system

This paper describes a method for solving a common problem faced by test engineers today, especially in the military and aerospace arena. The problem is the task of updating a system that contains obsolete instruments without being able to make any changes to the original test program set. This is a challenging task given that the software programs often were written twenty or more years ago and cannot be modified at all to accommodate today´s new technology. By using a combination of PXI hardware and software, an obsolete instrument can be replaced with a modern PXI-based modular instrument or a newer standalone instrument either of which can perform the same tasks.