Designing advanced instrumentation: real world, real time, real answers
Andrew T. Zander · Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE · 1995
In addressing the relationships among instrument design, applications and signal processing, it is necessary to consider the manner in which the hardware of a system is configured, i.e., how it is physically engineered and what considerations support that effort. Systems engineering concerns are in addition to those leading to a full understanding of all the system parameters associated with the physical measurement intended to be conducted. This multiplicity of considerations is even more important when the goal is the development of high performance instrumentation dedicated to applications in the real world, but which is also compact and inexpensive. A number of systems engineering considerations must be addressed when planning the development of advanced versions of physical property measurement equipment. A basic assumption is that the new equipment will not always be used in a high quality laboratory environment. It still will be required to meet its performance, size and cost specifications, however. Among these considerations are: the intended mobility of the equipment; the dependency on provided facilities; the expected system operational rates; the balance of operational flexibility and complexity; and the approach taken to contain cost.