WTSi is a test-driven design company. That means we thoroughly understand your requirements before we start on the detailed design. Furthermore, we determine how to test the design before it is built. Then we document these tests and discuss them with you. A thorough system-level understanding of requirements is a necessary component of a sound electronic product development process.
requirements capture and analysis
Does your project have simple or complex requirements? It doesn't matter. WTSi will help capture your requirements before the project starts. We will offer suggestions and help you plan for an extensible and robust system to support future plans. WTSi is aware of industry trends and we get advance information from our vendors that our customers may not be aware. With technology changing at a rapid pace, you don't want to get to market with last year's technology.
Topics for discussion during requirements capture:
- purpose and scope, from both a technical and business perspective
- market assessment and target demographics
- requirements:
- functional requirements
- usability requirements
- physical/mechanical requirements
- environmental requirements
- support requirements
- interface requirements
- assumptions
- constraints
- high level workflow plans, timelines and milestones
- evaluation plans and performance metrics
Requirements Architecture HumanFactors Environmental TestDevelopment Certifications
archictecture
Often a customer will have legacy, industry, or third-party requirements that drive a specific architecture. One example would be when a medical device requires a certified real-time operating system; this narrows down the selection of candidate target processors. Another example may be that the customer has firmware developers on staff and their processor of choice is possibly an ARM processor...or they like using an IAR (or Keil, or MPLABX) development platform which would also limit the microprocessor selection. Fortunately, WTSi has worked with many development platforms and processors and this is typically not an issue. However, we feel the need to have this architecture discussion with our customers to make sure the correct go-forward technical decision is made as well as considerations for cost and schedule.
Requirements Architecture HumanFactors Environmental TestDevelopment Certifications
human factors
WTSi has years of experience in all aspects of designing devices for human interaction including the concepts of HMI, UX, UI, and usability. On the software level, the HMI (human-machine interface) is the code that presents information to, and interacts with, the user; often this information is displayed in graphic format on an LCD display. The user experience (UX) refers to a person's emotions and attitudes about using a particular product, system or service. It includes the practical, meaningful,and valuable aspects of human–computer interaction and product ownership. The user interface (UI) - in the industrial design field of human and computer interaction, is the space where interactions between humans and machines occur. Usability is defined as the ease of use and learnability of a human-made object such as a tool or device. In software engineering, usability is the degree to which a software can be used by specified consumers to achieve quantified objectives with effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction in a quantified context of use.
Requirements Architecture HumanFactors Environmental TestDevelopment Certifications
environmental
Electronic devices need to be qualified in many different types of environments and choosing the right level of qualification for your product could mean the difference between the ultimate success or failure of your product in the marketplace. However, there is no need to incur the costs of 'over'-qualifying your product either. Whether your product is a consumer, commercial, industrial, or military product, WTSI will help you make sure your product has the right qualification for the right market.
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test development
"Test early. Test often". Always good advice. WTSi has a long history of helping our customers determine that a device we designed works properly, onsite, in their full-up system. We also provide additional application software for your system and special test equipment (STE) when required. WTSi has the expertise and equipment necessary to complete your testing to the level you require. We support your project in several ways: creating good test requirements, planning for complete test coverage, conducting tests, and collecting the requisite data for analysis and verification.
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third-party certifications
WTSi is fully qualified to get your product certified. This includes Part 15 (FCC), Industry Canada, European Conformity (CE), and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) certifications. However, certifications, which may effect your schedule and budget, can be avoided in many cases. For example, some customers may choose to purchase a commercial-off-the-shelf AC/DC adapter for their product; this is a cost effective solution and quite possibly saves them the time and effort of acquiring Underwriters Laboratories (UL) certification for an (A/C wall-outlet) device. Also, if the product is a lower volume product it might make sense for a customer to elect to incorporate FCC-certified RF modules in their product. There are also exceptions to the rules that WTSi is familiar with that need to be discussed - possibly saving a significant amount of our customer's schedule and budget.
Requirements Architecture HumanFactors Environmental TestDevelopment Certifications
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