The Tektronix PA3000 is a one- to four-channel power analyzer that’s ready to meet the challenges of testing today’s single- and multi-phase, high efficiency power conversion products and designs.  Use it to quickly visualize, analyze, and document power efficiency, energy consumption, and electrical performance to the latest regional and international standards, including Level VI, Energy Star, CEC, IEC 62301, CQC-3146, and more.

The essential power measurement tool for R&D and validation

• High accuracy supports testing to Level VI efficiency standards for external AC/DC power supplies
• Dedicated energy consumption testing in integration mode for standards like Energy star and CEC
• Complete solution for full compliance testing to IEC 62301 standby power requirements
• High 1 MHz bandwidth supports the LED module energy certification requirements of CQC-3146 as well as harmonic analysis of designs with higher fundamental frequencies
• More than 50 standard measurement functions, including harmonics, frequency, and star-delta computation
• Multiple analog and digital inputs for sensor data such as thermocouples, speeds sensors, and torques sensors
• Built-in ±15 V supplies for external transducers to support high current applications

AC/DC power supplies and LED drivers

Key tests include efficiency, standby power, harmonics, inrush current, and input power parameters such as power factor. The PA3000's graphical color display and PWRVIEW software boost productivity when performing these tests.

Example test configuration and measurement results for testing AC/DC power supplies and LED drivers

Efficiency Testing

• 0.04% basic accuracy for voltage and current enables high efficiency testing and incremental design changes for various regulatory standards
• 1 to 4 channels for comparative testing on two power supplies simultaneously
• Wide dynamic range from 90 μA to 30 A enables testing no load through full load.

Comparative efficiency testing on two AC-DC power supplies simultaneously

Standby Power testing

• 90 μA current measuring capability for standby power testing as low as 10 mW to support demanding low power designs
• Full compliance IEC 62301 ED 2.0 standby power standard test with device uncertainty calculations as required by the standard
• Long averaging enables stable standby power results
• Auto-up ranging mode enables gap-less measurement

Harmonic analysis

• Voltage and current harmonic analysis up to 100th order
• Easy THD and distortion factor measurements

Limits and Specification testing

• Custom limits setup with free PWRVIEW software enables standards and specification testing to set limits

Inrush Current testing

• Min Max hold feature with 1 MS/s sampling rate allows testing for inrush events

Input Power analysis

• More than 50 measurement parameters including Power factor, crest factor, THD
• Continuous 1 MS/s sampling rate enables accurate and gap-less input power analysis on non-sinusoidal signals

Appliances and consumer electronics

Key tests include energy consumption and standby power. The PA3000's built-in test modes simplify test setup.

Energy Consumption testing

• Dedicated Energy Consumption (Integrator) mode enables easy setup and testing for home and office appliances
• Auto-up-only ranging feature with PWRVIEW enables gapless energy consumption testing
• Integration and trend charts for long term monitoring
• 1 to 4 channels enable simultaneous testing of multiple products

Standby Power testing

• 90 μA current measuring capability and various ranging features for standby power testing on modern appliances
• Full compliance IEC 62301 standby power standard test with device uncertainty calculations as required by the standard
• Long averaging enables stable standby power results
• Auto-up ranging mode enables gap-less measurement

Solar inverters and UPS systems

Key requirements include system efficiency testing and single or three-phase output waveform analysis. The PA3000 enables long-term datalogging in PWRVIEW software or to a USB memory stick.

System Efficiency testing

• Up to four channels for simultaneously measuring all the stages of a UPS system or solar inverters
• High AC (0.04%) and DC (0.05%) basic accuracy for accurate measurements on all conversion stages
• 90 μA-30 A direct current measurement enables testing on wide range of loads
• Available high accuracy current transducers enable high power testing in kilowatt range
• Waveform view enables monitoring all phases simultaneously on single and three phase systems

Output Voltage and Power Analysis (1θ & 3θ )

• Default wiring configurations for single and three phase systems make it easy to setup and test complex voltage and power parameters
• 3 Phase 3 Wire (3V3A) configuration allows star delta conversion for line to line voltage, line to neutral voltage and phase or neutral current measurement.
• Voltage crest factor, VTHD and harmonics up to 100th order enable analyzing output voltage for various load conditions
• Trend charts in PWRVIEW software for long term monitoring
• Data logging via USB flash drive or PWRVIEW software for logging tracking data over a long period.

Wired and wireless automotive battery chargers

Key tests include efficiency and harmonic analysis. The 4-channel PA3000 enables testing power at each stage of the wireless charging system, including transmitter and receiver.
 

Efficiency testing

• High AC (0.04%) and DC (0.05%) basic accuracy for accurate measurements on all battery charger stages
• 30 A internal shunt and available high accuracy current transducers for high power testing in kilowatt range
• Standard ±15 V power supply on the back panel to power external current transducers
• Up to four channels enable testing power on each stage of wireless charger including the transmitter and the receiver
• Dedicated efficiency measurement on PWRIVEW software and Math function on PA3000 enable easy setup
• 1 MHz bandwidth enables accurate RMS and efficiency measurements for high frequency transmitter and receiver power signals

Harmonic analysis

• 1 MHz bandwidth enables harmonic analysis on wireless chargers with KHz fundamental frequency on transmitter and receiver
• Voltage, current and power harmonics to 100th order with THD and distortion factor to analyze distorted input and output signals

Three phase motor drives

Key tests include output power, efficiency, and harmonic analysis. The PA3000's PWRVIEW software offers wizard-driven setups to simplify 3-phase 3-wire and 3-phase 4-wire test configurations.

Output power

• Dedicated PWM Motor drive mode to test output voltage waveforms
• High frequency sampling with digital filtering in PWM mode, to reject the carrier frequency and detect the motor frequency while still using pre-filtered data for all measurements
• Optimized for steady-state three phase power measurements on the output.

Efficiency testing

• Dedicated application wizard on PWRIVEW software and Math function on PA3000 enable easy setup for motor drive efficiency
• Available 3 Phase 3 Wire configuration makes it easy to measure three phase inputs and outputs with four channels for system efficiency
• Four analog inputs rated at ±10 V and two counter inputs with 1 MHz bandwidth for torque and speed measurements enable measuring complete mechanical system efficiency
• 30 A internal shunt and available high accuracy current transducers for high power testing in kilowatt range
• Standard ±15 V power supply on the back panel to power external current transducers

Harmonic analysis

• Accurate frequency detection from 0.1 Hz – 1 MHz enables accurate frequency and harmonic measurements from low to high motor speeds
• Voltage, current and power harmonics to 100th order with THD and distortion factor to analyze distorted input and output signals and understand the heating effects of the signal

PWRVIEW PC software

PWRVIEW is a supporting software application for Windows PCs that compliments and extends the functionality of the PA3000. PWRVIEW enables you to do the following:

• Communicate with the PA3000 over any of the instrument's comm ports (USB, LAN, GPIB, RS-232)
• Change instrument settings remotely
• Transfer, view, and save measurement data in real-time from the instrument, including user-defined hi/lo limit waveforms, harmonic bar charts, and plots
• Log measurement data over a period of time or with manual trigger
• Communicate with and download data from multiple PA3000 instruments simultaneously
• Create formulas for the calculation of power conversion efficiency and other values
• Export measurement data to .csv format for importing into other applications
• Automate instrument setup, data collection, and report generation for key applications with just a few clicks, using wizard-driven interfaces
• Perform automated full compliance testing for Low Power Standby per IEC62301 ED 2.0 and MIL-STD-1399-Section 300B