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Creating and Exporting Waveforms for the M8190A

The Keysight N7624B Signal Studio for LTE/LTE-Advanced FDD software does not provide direct connectivity to the Keysight M8190A Wideband Arbitrary Waveform Generator. Therefore, waveforms licensed to play on the M8190A must be created in simulated hardware mode, exported to a waveform file, and then loaded into the M8190A via a USB storage device. The following procedure describes how to create and transfer waveform files to your M8190A for playback.

This procedure uses Keysight Signal Studio for WLAN as an example, but the steps are valid for all Signal Studio software applications that support the M8190A.

  1. Open the software. The welcome dialog window appears.

    If the welcome dialog window does not appear when the software is launched, click Tools > Options and make sure Display Welcome dialog is checked. Then close and re-open the software.

  2. Select Simulated hardware and make sure RF Output is highlighted. Click OK.

  3. Because simulation mode offers all possible capability options, the caution shown below may appear. Whether the caution appears or not, however, you must set any unpurchased licenses to OFF, otherwise the generated waveform cannot be played back in the M8190A. If your software's interface does not provide access to a Licenses node where this is performed, proceed to step 6.

  4. In the software's tree view, click Licenses. Notice that in simulated hardware mode, all software licensing options are set to On.

  5. In the State column, click the cell to turn off any options you did not purchase. This is necessary to create a valid waveform for playback on your M8190A. This example assumes the advanced option was not purchased for the M8190A.

    Action

    Result

  6. Configure the Signal Studio waveform using the various parameter selections and settings available under the Waveform Setup node in the tree view. Waveform parameters vary among Signal Studio products, so refer to this help system for more information.

  7. Click the Generate button.

  8. Under the File menu, select Export Waveform Data.

  9. Name the waveform file and save it to your PC.

  10. Copy the waveform file to a portable USB storage device.

    This would be a good time to also save a backup copy of the waveform file.

  11. Insert the USB storage device into the PC running the M8190A's Soft Front Panel.

  12. From the M8190A's Soft Front Panel, under the Output tab, set Channel 1 and Channel 2 to Direct output mode.

  13. Under Import Waveform tab, set the File Format to SignalStudioEncrypted and then click File... to navigate to the waveform file(*.wfm) you want to play. Click Send to Instrument and wait until the waveform is loaded into memory and the Baseband Sample Rate is updated to the value in the waveform header. Make sure both Channel 1 and Channel 2 outputs are enabled, indicated by the checkboxes.

  14. Under the Status/Control tab, click Run to start playing the waveform. Refer to the M8190A's user documentation for more information.