Exploiting test technology in the field test environment

The growing expeditionary nature of defense force operations is increasing the utilization and deployment of sophisticated electronic equipment into geographically remote areas. In these situations, the equipment's operational availability becomes increasingly dependent on the efficacy of front line test capability. Yet the operational scenario restricts the amount of test resources that can be made available. The built-in test (BIT) solution to this has been less successful than expected, due mainly to inherent technical limitations and financial constraints of implementing effective BIT. It has been shown the BIT can, however, be supplemented by umbilical extension to compact front line test sets (FLTS), and the capability of these represents an exciting challenge for the exploitation of both compact processing power and new test technology. The challenge extends to exploring the operational theater's rearward test support integration and telemetric test opportunities in the era of battlespace digitization. Throughout this exploration we must maintain the emerging concepts of data interoperability, whereby the critical first piece of data, captured at the front line, is made available to all other levels of maintenance. This will promote more cost effective equipment management and improve the overall reliability, maintainability and ultimate availability of weapon systems. The exercise must, however, include cost-benefit analyses within the framework of BIT/FLTS options and the harmonization of common core facilities. This paper will discuss this analysis and present one possible solution to this challenge.