Hardware Validation Backlog¶
This page separates documentation work from tasks that require real hardware access.
Priority hardware tasks¶
| Priority | Issue | Task | Evidence to collect |
|---|---|---|---|
| P0 | #25 | Complete safe cabled loopback validation | conducted capture/report are measured; add NanoVNA S21 for the cable and marked 30 dB attenuator |
| Done | #26 | Publish and repeat QPSK demo IQ | public 64 KiB synthetic Git LFS payload, SHA256, deterministic rebuild, zero-BER replay and report assets are committed; measured OTA raw-data review remains separate |
| P2 | #29 | Extend AD9363 gain table | first 915 MHz relative RX/TX sweeps are measured; add calibrated multi-frequency and large-signal points |
| P2 | #25/#26 | Add final hardware report | report page, figures, limitations |
Priority non-hardware follow-up¶
| Priority | Task | Evidence to collect |
|---|---|---|
| P1 | Promote Block 5 OOC Vivado reports to integrated design reports | placed-and-routed utilization, timing, clocking context |
| P1 | Keep the hardware evidence index synchronized with new bring-up artifacts | evidence map entries, status labels, next proof action |
| P1 | Keep board-session templates ready | report template, dataset manifest template, compact measurement table |
Issue-to-evidence closure plan¶
| Issue | Done when |
|---|---|
| #25 | The safe cabled tone run now has nominal attenuation, gain settings, capture metadata, FFT/metrics and a short conclusion in reports/hardware/ad9361-conducted-loopback-20260715.md. Full closure still requires NanoVNA S21 evidence for the cable and marked 30 dB attenuator. |
| #26 | Complete for the synthetic replay scope: the public QPSK IQ fixture has a Git LFS payload, manifest, checksum, deterministic rebuild, replay command, zero BER/SER, constellation plot and EVM/SNR summary. This does not close publication review for the separate measured OTA WAV. |
| #29 | The first relative table is recorded in reports/hardware/ad9361-gain-overload-table-20260715.md with safe starting values and limitations. Full closure requires calibrated passive-path loss, multiple frequencies and a controlled large-signal boundary. |
NanoVNA pre-check for safe cabled loopback¶
Before connecting the AD9363 TX/RX path for conducted or near-field experiments, record a short NanoVNA check of the passive RF path:
| Item | Measurement | Done when |
|---|---|---|
| Cable | S21 |
insertion loss is recorded at the operating frequency |
| Fixed attenuator | S21 |
measured attenuation is close to the marked value |
| Digital attenuator | S21 |
selected sweep points are characterized or Lab 10.6 is referenced |
| Load | S11 / VSWR |
load is close to 50 ohm at the operating frequency |
| Optional filter | S21 |
passband and stopband behavior are documented |
Store screenshots, CSV or Touchstone files together with the RF measurement report. This prevents a bad cable, adapter, filter or attenuator from being misdiagnosed as CFO, ADC overload, synchronization failure or an FPGA logic bug.
Definition of done¶
A hardware task is done when it has:
- exact setup description;
- hardware and software versions;
- RF safety notes;
- data or screenshot evidence;
- reproducible analysis command;
- short engineering conclusion.
Tasks that do not require hardware¶
- Dataset manifest templates.
- Final project rubric.
- Student CI guide.
- FPGA resource report template.
- Synthetic replay examples.
- Routed Vivado implementation reports for the exact board design.
- Board-session measurement log templates.
Tasks that require hardware¶
- NanoVNA characterization of the cable and marked 30 dB attenuator used by the measured conducted loopback.
- Calibrated multi-frequency extension of the AD9363 gain table and controlled large-signal boundary.
- Receiver large-signal checks.
- Final measured QPSK or OFDM demo.