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Press Release

octoScope introduces fieldPal, a new wireless test instrument for field use

The fieldPal™ extends powerful test and diagnostics capabilities of the octoBox wireless testbed into open air test environments, such as test houses or walk in test chambers

Littleton, Massachusetts, November 15, 2020 - octoScope®, the leader in accurate, repeatable and automated wireless personal testbeds, announces fieldPal™ - a precision Wi-Fi test instrument that enables Wi-Fi testing and OFDMA wireless packet capture in the field.

The introduction of new Wi-Fi technologies such as Wi-Fi 6 and mesh networks will expand the usage of Wi-Fi into many new application areas such as video streaming, gaming and Internet of Things. To test performance of the new wireless technologies and applications, engineers use controlled laboratory testbeds like the octoBox in combination with field testing in customers’ homes, test houses and walk-in isolation chambers. New types of test tools are needed that allow testing in the field as well as replication of usage scenarios in a laboratory testbed.

Built on the same technology as octoScope’s lab test instrument, STApal, and running the same software, the fieldPal can perform many of the same tests in the field as in the octoBox testbed.

As a sniffer, fieldPal captures legacy 802.11abgnac packets as well as 802.11ax OFDMA (orthogonal frequency domain multiple access) packets in PCAP format to Wireshark in real-time.

The fieldPal supports octoScope’s multiPerf traffic tool and can be used as a traffic end point in field test scenarios. It also allows for insightful visualization of OFDMA performance.

“Wi-Fi 6 introduces a need for OFDMA capabilities not currently available in common field analyzers. Furthermore, complex wireless mesh networks being deployed for better coverage require system level testing, both in the lab and in the field. The fieldPal helps bridge the gap between field and laboratory testing by enabling unique field-to-lab test capabilities that help replicate real-life test scenarios in a controlled testbed,” said Fanny Mlinarsky, President of octoScope.

About the octoBox personal wireless testbed

Stackable and configurable octoBox personal testbeds are completely isolated from external interference and can be used at an engineer’s office or lab bench.

Each octoBox testbed is controlled by a dedicated Node.js web server accessible via a browser UI for manual control, or via REST API for test automation. The server provides the time base for the testbed and controls the built-in instruments, DUT configuration, traffic, and test flow. Test results are saved in a MongoDB database, enabling multiple teams to easily collaborate by sharing the test automation scripts and test results.

About octoScope

octoScope is the market leader in isolated, repeatable and automated wireless personal testbeds. Our patented technology redefines the accuracy, stability, economics and value of over-the-air wireless testing. The octoBox testbed is configurable for automated regression test sequences with a range of airlink conditions and interference scenarios. The octoBox testbeds are scalable to support a single DUT or multi-node mesh systems under test.

The testbeds feature powerful technologies to evaluate the behavior and performance of a broad range of wireless devices and systems. The tested capabilities include protocol monitoring, test traffic generation, motion and multipath emulation, interference generation and device emulation.

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