Rohde & Schwarz and Ceva present industry's first test solution for the upcoming Bluetooth OTA UTP Test Mode

Rohde & Schwarz and Ceva present industry's first test solution for the upcoming Bluetooth OTA UTP Test Mode The next Bluetooth release is expected to be ratified soon. One important new feature is the Unified Test Protocol (UTP) Test Mode for Bluetooth Low Energy, that will complement existing test methods. The UTP Test Mode will additionally enable over-the-air (OTA) controlled device testing, which will simplify measurements of small and highly integrated devices enormously, since no direct wired connection to the tester is needed. Rohde & Schwarz and Ceva, in close cooperation, have developed the world's first test solution for this new test mode, making its debut at embedded world 2025.

The R&S CMW tester platform already supports Bluetooth UTP Test Mode for over-the-air testing thanks to the Ceva radio-based controlling software. (Image: Rohde & Schwarz)

Rohde & Schwarz and Ceva today unveiled the world's first test solution supporting the upcoming Bluetooth OTA UTP Test Mode, enabling over-the-air (OTA) controlled device testing. The two companies will showcase their joint solution at embedded world 2025 in Nuremberg. Rohde & Schwarz and Ceva closely collaborated to develop this test solution, powered by Ceva-Waves Bluetooth Low Energy IP. It runs on the R&S CMW radio communication tester platform from Rohde & Schwarz, with integrated Ceva-Waves Bluetooth Low Energy controller software licensed from Ceva.

OTA-Testing for small and highly integrated Bluetooth devices

Until now, wearables and other small and highly integrated Bluetooth devices required testing using the Direct Test Mode which involves a control cable between the test instrument and the device under test (DUT). Especially encapsulated DUTs make it difficult or even impossible to integrate a connection for this control cable. Hence, sending test control messages over the air without any cabling between tester and DUT as specified in the UTP mode will simplify the test setup immensely.

Radio controlled testing powered by Ceva

The Ceva-Waves Bluetooth Low Energy platform provides a fast, low-risk path for integrating low power and robust Bluetooth Low Energy connectivity into a system on a chip (SoC). The suite of optimized, integrated hardware IP and software has been deployed and Bluetooth SIG qualified in many customer chips. It has been shipped in billions of devices across various markets including consumer, automotive, industrial, mobile and smart home. Ceva-Waves Bluetooth Low Energy IP stood out as the ideal choice for Rohde & Schwarz to integrate it in their OTA UTP Tester, due to its maturity and robustness, combined with the technical support Ceva provides its customers throughout the development process.

Tal Shalev, vice president and general manager of the wireless IoT business unit at Ceva, commented: Rohde & Schwarz has long been a leader in Bluetooth testing, and their highly respected R&S CMW radio communication tester platform continues to set industry standards. The introduction of Bluetooth OTA UTP Test Mode is a crucial advancement for testing next-generation consumer Bluetooth products, and we congratulate them on this timely innovation, powered by Ceva-Waves Bluetooth technology.

Unified Bluetooth testing over-the-air

The Bluetooth UTP Test Mode on the R&S CMW radio communication tester platform offers a simple and precise signaling test solution, perfectly suited for Bluetooth Low Energy radio tests in development, pre-conformance and production testing. All Bluetooth Low Energy and Bluetooth Classic Radio measurements are unified and can be performed with a single test setup over the air in a signaling connection. Comprehensive test automation and the highly accurate implementation of the Bluetooth test cases are crucial to ensure compliance to the Bluetooth specifications.

Christoph Pointner, Senior Vice President for Mobile Radio Testers at Rohde & Schwarz, says: Thanks to our close partnership with Ceva and their highly-proven Bluetooth Low Energy IP we were able to implement the new Bluetooth UTP Test Mode in line with the specifications of the Bluetooth Core Specification Working Group on our well-established R&S CMW platform. This highly anticipated solution will enable vendors and manufacturers of wireless chipsets, modules, and devices to test their products over-the-air with greater ease. In addition, they will be able to perform the testing for all Bluetooth radios with the same test setup.

Both partners are actively involved in defining the specifications within the Bluetooth Core Specification Working Group, ensuring that the test solution will be in line with the specifications of the upcoming Bluetooth release. In addition, the solution is compatible with the already ratified Bluetooth releases up to release 6.0 Channel Sounding, supporting the existing Direct Test Mode (DTM) with the conducted control connection.

Rohde & Schwarz will showcase this ready-to-market test solution from March 11 to 13, 2025 at embedded world Exhibition & Conference in hall 4 at booth 4-218. Visit Ceva in hall 4 at booth 4-462 for detailed information about the radio-based controlling software.

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