New Industry Products

Tektronix Releases New Collaboration Software TekDrive for Oscilloscopes

December 20, 2020 by Alessandro Mascellino

Measurement and monitoring solutions firm Tektronix released a new oscilloscope-to-cloud software solution last week.

TekDrive provides engineers the ability to share and recall data in real-life on an oscilloscope, bypassing the need for additional data-sharing practices.

The program also allows for global data collaboration across different devices, including PCs, phones, or tablets.

 

An overview of the TekDrive platform. Image used courtesy of Tektronix.
An overview of the TekDrive platform. Image used courtesy of Tektronix.

 

TekDrive

According to Tektronix, TekDrive would be the first general-purpose test and measurement file system with scope-like data visualizations.

The program is capable of providing ultra-smooth visualization and analysis capabilities supporting all modern browsers.

These include options to view, zoom, pan, measure, decode, and analyze full test and measurement data on different devices without the need for any additional software.

"This technology is a game-changer for teams," said Tektronix president Tami Newcombe. 

"Clients tell us about insecure data-sharing practices that are awkward and unreliable, and now with TekDrive, data sharing is secure and lightning fast.”

According to the president, launching TekDrive marks a major expansion of the company’s vision to focus on relevant software solutions that correspond to the latest industry needs.

To foster integration with secure vendor-agnostic REST APIs for scripting, automation, and analysis, Tektronix provides SDKs and examples in several programming languages, like Python, Matlab, and LabVIEW. 

The TekCloud Developer Program also constitutes a secure channel for third-party developers to add native TekDrive capabilities to their devices, instruments, and software applications.

 

Improving Oscilloscope Capabilities 

According to Tektronix, seventy percent of oscilloscope users need to transfer data somewhere else during measuring operations.

"Aggregating data from various instruments has always been a challenge. Engineers often use unsecured USB sticks, or worse, snap photos of the instrument's screen with a phone," explained Siddharth Deliwala, director of laboratory programs at the University of Pennsylvania. 

"Being able to share data directly from instruments via TekDrive is a breakthrough for engineering teams in the commercial and academic space to learn and innovate efficiently." 

In fact, TekDrive has been designed particularly to address this issue, so its data updates are instantly saved in shared folders in the cloud. Owners can then manage secure access and permissions at a granular level.

"I joined Tektronix to help inspire the next wave of innovation in electronics engineering, and projects like this will do exactly that," said David Sulpy, chief information officer at Tektronix. 

"Engineers needed their own workspace in the cloud to securely manage complicated, real-time data from their oscilloscopes. TekDrive fulfills that need, whether they are working in the lab or at home," he added.

 

Designing Test and Measurement Solutions

Headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon, Tektronix specializes in the design and manufacturing of test and measurement solutions.

The company has been active since 1946 and has since released a variety of solutions for healthcare, communications, and mobility.

Tektronix has over 700 patents under its umbrella and counts offices in 21 countries.

TekDrive is the company’s latest addition, is already available in some regions, and will be released worldwide over the next few months. 

Pricing begins at $49.99 per month for individuals. All TekDrive users will receive a free contributor account, with the Enterprise Tier featuring unlimited contributors.

For more information about TekDrive, you can check the Tektronix website here.