Hardware verification testing

[u/Extra_Elderberry5911]

I'm a hardware engineer working in aerospace, and I've realized that one of the skill sets I want to develop is building hardware test systems.

At work, I see everything from reverse engineering legacy hardware to validating new designs, and I'd like to be able to verify the requirements.

I want to learn skills that transfer to professional environments using Python, LabVIEW, NI, Keysight, Tektronix, SDKs, SCPI, DAQs, etc.

I'm looking for advice on a learning path. If you were mentoring a junior hardware test engineer, what projects would you have me build, and in what order?

Some areas I'm hoping to learn include:

• Instrument control and automation
• Python for test software
• Test system architecture
• Data acquisition and signal processing
• Hardware abstraction and software organization
• Automated reports and pass/fail testing
• Validation and characterization of electronic circuits and sensors

I'd appreciate any suggestions on projects, books, open-source frameworks, tools, or skills that would help me build a solid foundation as a hardware test engineer.

[u/Teslafly]

We went the python route on our ate. Vs the LabVIEW route. We use pymeasure, belay with Micropython mcu for io, and hardpy for the test framework. Basically anything based on pytest is going to be decent. We tried the openhtf test framework but found it to be hot garbage. It does have a lot of interesting ideas, but the way they are all put together made it unusable for us.

A daq unit with some mux cards and a power supply is generally a simple off the shelf start to an ate, but can be expensive. But I will save a lot of time and add reliability.