Interview with Wei Bojun, Director of Global Marketing, Agilent's Basic Instruments Division

At present, the entire electronics and communications industry is facing pressures such as shortening the design cycle, using fewer resources to speed up the production of new products, and using advanced tools to improve personal efficiency. As a tool that engineers face every day, how will the basic instruments represented by digital multimeters and oscilloscopes develop in the future? What innovation technology is there to adapt or better than the needs of the engineers? Recently, Wei Bojun, director of global marketing for Agilent's Basic Instruments Division, received an exclusive exclusive interview with the media on related topics.

What is the current development trend of the entire basic instrument market?

With the development of science and technology, the whole world is becoming more and more “electronic”. Many items that are closely related to our work, life, and production contain a large number of electronic components. Therefore, there is an increasing demand for electronic test and measurement, especially for basic measurement instruments. many.

As an example from three aspects, education: In the past, only the electronics and information industry required basic instruments, but now the industry represented by machinery, chemical analysis, and life sciences has a very strong demand for basic instruments. Components: With each line The demand for electronic products in various industries will increase by 4%-6% for the annual demand for basic equipment for component production lines; the Chinese market: China has changed from a manufacturing and exporting country to a country with a vast demand for consumer electronics products. GDP growth has remained at around 8% to 9%. Based on this background, we predict that the demand for basic instruments in the Chinese market will also maintain an annual growth rate of 4% to 6%.

As an important member of the basic instrument family, what position is the handheld test instrument in the Agilent product layout?

Electrical and electronic equipment has become more and more sophisticated, and daily tasks such as maintenance and repairs, regular maintenance, workshop commissioning and calibration are urgently needed to simplify operations to reduce downtime and increase production efficiency. We recognize that engineers and technicians who often need to perform mobile measurement tasks most need reliable measuring instruments to assist them in completing tasks efficiently and accurately. So in recent years, Agilent has applied a lot of innovative and professional traditions to handheld instruments.

Agilent currently offers handheld instruments that include multimeters, clamp meters, oscilloscopes, calibrators, LCR meters, and capacitance meters. The orange appearance of each handpiece is not only conspicuous, but also emphasizes the provision of rich functionality while meeting key safety standards. Ensure the ease of use of the product. From electronic product inspections to the installation, maintenance, calibration and quality control of electromechanical equipment, from dark and noisy environments to dangerous and inaccessible places, we all hope to simplify the work of users with smart, compact gauges.

The long-range wireless connection solution that Agilent launched recently, has expanded the application field of handheld multimeter greatly. Can you explain this plan in detail?

Agilent’s new remote wireless connectivity solution allows users to monitor the inside of a running device or high-voltage instrumentation panel at a safe distance. The core is the U1177A IR-Bluetooth adapter, which is connected to the IR interface on the back of Agilent's 11 models of multimeters, that is, the U1177A is inserted directly into the IR slot and the IR data is converted into a two-way Bluetooth link, making these multimeters immediately available. With wireless connectivity, customers can use this to monitor real-time test data from multimeters 10 meters away.

In addition, the program also includes two applications based on the Android platform for data monitoring and data logging. Each application can be connected to up to three multimeters equipped with U1177A adapters, where "mobilemeter" continuously scans the multimeter's test data and has a remote change measurement mode; "mobilelogger" can perform interval or manual data recording and tracing lines Graphs for trend analysis. This feature is very effective when troubleshooting, users can zoom in on the graphic area of ​​interest for further analysis, and share photos and text of test results with colleagues via email or SMS.

How does this solution help the user's daily work?

The test site is very complicated. Technicians who conduct industrial control at the factory often need to test machines that are running or moving. But these test points are not easily accessible unless they are physically close to making effective measurements. This is usually very dangerous. For electricians in the commercial and industrial fields, measurements need to be made inside the high-voltage instrument cluster, but the dashboard is based on safety. Factors usually turn off the voltage automatically when it is turned on.

The above-mentioned high-risk operation cases in these scenarios keep the staff at risk. However, if the multimeter is placed at the test point and the test data is read wirelessly, then a safe alternative to the above application is provided. Another important advantage of this solution is that multiple tasks can be performed at the same time to increase efficiency. For example, a user may need to control a multimeter switch while reading the multimeter. By connecting with three hand-held meters, engineers can perform up to six tasks at the same time.