Test setup and method of testing

Abstract

The present disclosure describes a testing setup that comprises two robotic manipulators (6) that interacts with the device (4a) under test. In order to observe the reaction of the device or system to the interaction, the test setup also has a camera (10) that is able to record visual elements displayed on a display of the device or system.

Description

[0001] TEST SETUP AND METHOD OF TESTING

[0002] FIELD

[0003] The present invention relates to automatized testing, and in particular, test setups and testing methods for testing devices and systems that have a user interface for human-machine interaction.

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] Traditionally user interfaces (e.g., a user interface of an infotainment system of a vehicle) have been tested manually. In order to reduce this repetitive and error-prone work, various automatized test setups have been developed. For example, the user interfaces may be tested with different kinds of robotic manipulators that are configured to interact with the user interface.

[0006] However, while such automatized test setups highly increase the speed and reliability of the testing, some interactions may be difficult to test reliably.

[0007] SUMMARY

[0008] The objective of the invention is to solve the afore-mentioned problem. The object of the disclosure is achieved by a test setup and a corresponding testing method that are characterized by what is stated in the independent claims. The preferred embodiments of the disclosure are disclosed in the dependent claims.

[0009] A testing setup according to the present disclosure comprises two robotic manipulators that are able to interact with the device (or system) under test. In order to observe the reaction of the device or system to the interaction, the test setup also has a camera that is able to record visual elements displayed on a display of the device or system.

[0010] An advantage of the above-described test setup is that it is easy to setup, maintain and scale up. The test setup enables extremely low maintenance effort when testing the same application in different devices. The test setup enables automatic testing every day in a week for 24 hours. With two robotic manipulators, the test setup is able to emulate even two-handed interactions and two-finger gestures, such as zoom and pinch gestures performed on a touch-screen.

[0011] BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] In order to best describe the manner in which the above-described embodiments are implemented, as well as define other advantages and features of the disclosure, a more particular description is provided below and is illustrated in the appended drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only exemplary embodiments of the invention and are not therefore to be considered to be limiting in scope, the examples will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the accompanying drawings in which:

[0013] Figure 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of a test setup according to the present disclosure.

[0014] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] The present disclosure introduces a test setup for testing a device or a system. In the context of the present disclosure, a device or a system to be tested may be any physical interface enabling interaction between a (human user) and a machine. In the present disclosure, such a device or a system is referred to as a Device Under Test (DUT) or a System Under Test (SUT), respectively. A DUT and a SUT implements a Human Machine Interface (HMI). For example, a DUT may be a single, integrated unit, such a as a commercial standalone product, whereas a SUT may be a part of a more complex arrangement with a plurality of interfaces to test. A SUT may include several DUTs, for example. A mobile phone or a tablet computer are some examples of a DUT. A user interface of infotainment system (or parts thereof) of a vehicle is one example of a SUT. Another example of a SUT is a mobile phone wirelessly linked to a wearable device, such as a smart watch. Further, in the context of the present disclosure, the meaning of the term "testing" includes at least performing non-intru- sive tests on the DUT / SUT. Such tests may be performed without attaching any cables to the DUT / SUT or installing additional software inside them. In other words, the testing includes steps of manipulating a user interface of the DUT / SUT with the same means as available during normal use. This may comprise steps like pressing buttons on a user interface and interacting with a touch screen of the user interface, for example. Further, the testing may also comprise manipulating the user interface or interfaces at two different physical locations simultaneously and / or in synchrony.

[0016] To be able to perform all the above-mentioned aspects of testing, a test setup according to the present disclosure comprises two robotic manipulators. In this context, a robotic manipulator is a unit that is configured such that it is able to freely move its end effector on a plane representing a flat surface (such as a touch pad or touch screen) of a DUT or a SUT. In this manner, the robotic manipulator is able to emulate motions of a finger on a touch screen of the DUT or the SUT. Further, the robotic manipulator is preferably such that it is also able to reproduce motions perpendicular to said plane, thereby emulating pressing virtual buttons a touch screen or actual physical buttons on a user interface. Each robotic manipulator of the test setup may be in the form of a robotic arm, for example. With two robotic arms, user interactions requiring simultaneous button presses at two locations can be emulated. Further, with two robotic arms, zoom and pinch gestures may be emulated on a touch screen. The dual arm setup also allows two separate DUTs to be simultaneously operated. For example, two DUTs may be independently tested at the same time. Alternatively, interoperation requiring simultaneous user interaction on two separate DUTs in a SUT comprising a plurality of DUTs may also be tested.

[0017] Figure 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of a test setup 1 according to the present disclosure. The test setup 1 comprises a frame 2 with a platform on which a Device Under Test (DUT) or a System Under Test (SUT) is received. In Figure 1, a single DUT 4a is shown. Alternatively, a SUT comprising multiple devices 4a and 4b (shown in dashed lines) may be placed on the platform for testing. The physical size of the test setup 1 and its frame 2 may be scaled based on the application. For example, the test setup 1 may be such that its frame 2 fits on an office desk, for example.

[0018] The test setup 1 in Figure 1 further comprises two robotic manipulators in the form of a robotic arms 6 that may be attached to the frame 2. Each robotic arm 6 may be an articulated robot having a limb part 6.1 comprising two link elements connected to each other via a first hinge joint. A first end of the limb part 6.1 is connected to a shoulder part 6.2 via a second hinge joint. The first hinge joint and second hinge joint define a vertical plane of motion for the limb part. The shoulder part 6.2 is connected to a base part 6.3 via a third hinge joint having a vertical rotational axis, thereby allowing the limb unit 6.1 (and its plane of motion) to be rotated about the vertical axis. As a result, the second end of the limb part can be freely moved on a planar surface of a DUT / SUT placed on the test platform of the test setup and also perpendicularly with respect to the surface.

[0019] Each robotic arm 6 further has an end effector 8 at the second end of its limb part. The end effector 8 may have a soft / flexible tip (e.g., in the form of a computer stylus) that emulates human fingertip. The end effector 8 may be connected to a second end of the limb part 6.1 via a hinge joint, for example. With the end effector 8, each robotic arm 6 is able to emulate motions of a finger on a touch screen of the DUT or the SUT. Further, the test setup may also comprise a loudspeaker in order to interact with the DUT or SUT via audio signals (e.g., in the form of voice commands).

[0020] To be able to capture how the DUT / SUT responds to the interaction generated with the test setup, the test setup may further comprise an image capturing device. In Figure 1, the image capturing device is in the form of a camera 10 that is attached to the frame 2 and is positioned above the test platform. The camera 10 is configured to image a view of a display of the DUT 4a. The imaged view may be in the form of recorded still images / frames suitable to be used in machine vision and / or Optical Character Recognition (OCR) analyses, for example. Alternatively, a video may be captured. Further, the test setup may also include means for capturing audio signals produced by the DUT / SUT (e.g., a microphone, not shown in Figure 1). The microphone may be separate or integrated to the camera 10.

[0021] To perform a test sequence on the DUT 4a, the test setup 1 may be coupled with a control system controlling the test setup 1. The control system may be implemented on a desktop computer, for example. The control system may include: a processing unit; system memory, which may include high-speed random-access memory ("RAM"), non-volatile memory ("ROM"), and / or one or more bulk non-volatile non- transitory computer-readable storage mediums (e.g., a hard disk, flash memory, etc.) for storing programs and other data for use and execution by the processing unit. The operation of the control system may be generally controlled by the processing unit by executing software instructions and programs stored in the system memory and / or internal memory of the processing unit. The system and method disclosed herein are not limited to any specific computer, device, service, or other apparatus architecture and may be implemented by a suitable combination of hardware, software, and / or firmware. Software implementations may include one or more computer programs comprising executable code / instructions that, when executed by a processor, may cause the processor to perform a method defined at least in part by the executable instructions. Further, a computer program can be deployed to be executed on one computer or on multiple computers at one site or distributed across multiple sites and interconnected by a communication network.

[0022] A control system of a test setup according to the present disclosure may be configured to receive a desired test sequence as an input and may control the test setup to perform one or more of testing steps based on it. A testing step may comprise generating stimuli for the DUT / SUT and observing how the DUT / SUT responds to the stimuli. For example, if the DUT / SUT is a mobile device with a touch screen, the control system may control the robotic arms 6 to emulate human interaction, such as a gesture or gestures performed on the touch screen by an end user (e.g., a swipe gesture, a pinch / zoom / rotate gesture, or a press of a virtual button or buttons). The feedback data provided by the test setup may comprise at least visual data from the camera 10. For example, the camera 10 imaging the touch screen may record visual data on how the mobile device reacts to the emulated gesture and provide this visual data (comprising information on at least visual elements displayed on the display of the DUT 4a) to the control system as feedback data. The control system may control the entire test sequence. For example, the control system be configured to control cameras (e.g., request frames and process the data from frames in real time) and control the robotic arm based on the frames received from camera (e.g., provide a set of commands for different gestures executed by robotic arm). The control system may also provide a test report based on the actual executed test sequence.

[0023] A test sequence of a test setup according to the present disclosure is not limited to the above examples. The test sequence may be defined by a user and may comprise any number of testing steps. Further, the testing steps may comprise also other interactions than those mentioned above. For example, as mentioned earlier, the test setup may further comprise a loudspeaker and / or a microphone which may be used to generate stimuli and to observe reactions to the stimuli.

[0024] Based on the emulated human interaction and the received visual data, the control system may determine at least one test result. In this context, a test result may comprise an indication (e.g., PASS / FAIL) whether the DUT / SUT has passed a certain testing step. The determining of the at least one test result may utilize machine vision and OCR, for example. Machine vision may be used to constantly verify and validate changes on a screen of a DUT / SUT, for example. These changes can be detected practically in real time during the test sequence. Further, OCR may be used for quickly finding, recognizing, and interpreting textual elements on the screen. The recognized textual information may be included in the test results.

[0025] In addition to the above-described test setup, the present disclosure also describes a method for testing mobile devices. The method comprises providing a DUT (Device Under Test) on a test platform of a test setup and running a test sequence using the test setup. The test sequence may comprise controlling two robotic arms to emulate human interaction with the DUT and imaging a view of a display of the DUT with a camera. Each robotic arm may have an end effector that emulates human fingertip, and the camera may be attached to the frame and positioned above the platform, so that visual data of the imaged view comprises information on visual elements displayed on the display of the DUT in response to the emulated human interaction. The test sequence further comprises determining at least one test result based on the emulated human interaction and the visual data.

[0026] While the present disclosure mostly discusses non-intrusive testing, the test setup according to the present disclosure is not limited only to non-intrusive testing. In some embodiments, the testing may further involve actions that may be seen as intrusive. For example, in some embodiments, the test may include steps of sending control signals to the SUT / DUT via a wired (e.g., CAN interface) or wireless (e.g., Bluetooth) communications interface. A test setup according to the present disclosure may therefore comprise a wired and / or wireless communications interface for this purpose.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A test setup comprising- a frame (2) with a platform on which at least one Device Under Test (4a), DUT, is received,- two robotic arms (6) attached to the frame, each robotic arm (6) having an end effector (8) that emulates human fingertip, and- a camera (10) attached to the frame (2) and positioned above the platform, the first camera (10) being configured to image a view of a display of the DUT (4a),- a control system configured to perform a test sequence on the DUT (4a), the control system being configured to- control the robotic arms (6) to emulate human interaction with the DUT (4a),- receive feedback data, the feedback data comprising at least visual data from the first camera (10), the visual data comprising information on visual elements displayed on the display of the DUT (4a) in response to the emulated human interaction, and- determine at least one test result based on the emulated human interaction and the received feedback data.

2. A test setup according to claim 1, wherein the control system further comprises a loudspeaker for generating audio signals as stimuli for the DUT and a microphone for capturing audio signals generated by the DUT.

3. A test setup according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the test setup further comprises a wired or wireless communications interface for sending control signals to the DUT.

4. A method for testing mobile devices, wherein the method comprises comprising- providing a DUT (Device Under Test) on a test platform of a test setup, and- running a test sequence that comprises, at least,- controlling two robotic arms to emulate human interaction with the DUT, each robotic arm having an end effector that emulates human fingertip,- imaging a view of a display of the DUT with a first camera, the first camera being attached to the frame and positioned above the platform, and visual data of the imaged view comprising information on visual elements displayed on the display of the DUT in response to the emulated human interaction, and- determining at least one test result based on the emulated human interaction and the visual data.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the running of the test sequency comprises- generating audio signals as stimuli for the DUT using a loudspeaker, and / or- capturing audio signals generated by the DUT with a microphone.

6. A method according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the running of the test sequency comprises sending control signals to the DUT via a wired or wireless communications interface.

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