JTAG intros ‘PMBusProg’ for in-system programming of power management devices

THE NETHERLANDS: JTAG Technologies, world-wide provider of board test and device programming tools based chiefly on IEEE Std 1149.x, has broadened its portfolio by offering a unique Power Management Bus (PMBus) IC programming solution that supports devices from leading vendors Linear Technologies and TI.

PMBusProg supplements JTAG’s existing range of SCIP (Serial Controlled IC Programmers) that are already widely used within the manufacturing processes of CEMs, and ODMs .

Peter van den Eijnden, MD of JTAG Technologies, explains some of the background of PMBusProg: “While the individual IC vendors generally offer their own solution for programming parts ‘in-system’ these are seldom robust enough for the factory environment nor are they  ‘integratable’ into existing board test systems. By developing PMBusProg we were responding to customer’s demands who were looking for a fast convenient solution that could run on existing hardware and be integrated into existing test platforms. “

Interested parties might like to note that PMBusProg runs on all DataBlaster controllers from JTAG Technologies and can be used to access PMBus pins via local JTAG (boundary-scan) compliant devices or directly from an external DIOS (Digital IO Scan) module

SCIP programming solutions were originally devised to program the embedded memories of microprocessors and microcontrollers that featured a JTAG or similar port such as BDM. The range has now been expanded however to cover numerous other protocols such as those used by Microchip PIC, Freescale HCS08 and now PMBus.

Where necessary the SCIP family employs Scan Configurable Interface Logic (SCIL) hardware interface modules. These are ‘swappable’ interfaces that can convert a JTAG hardware controller into a protocol-specific device programmer or tester.

It is this modular combination of SCIL hardware and SCIP software routines that  makes  it easy for manufacturers of PCBs featuring multi-vendor, multi-protocol processors to configure a universal in-system programming platform for production.

Peter van den Eijnden sees SCIP not as  a single product but an array of support options that users can select to satisfy their device programming requirements. Use of SCIP functions allows customer to get more from their JTAG tools investment and increase the board coverage.