py_dvt_ate

ThermalATE: Coupled Physics DVT Simulation Platform

A software simulation environment that accurately models the physical coupling between thermal and electrical domains, enabling DVT (Design Validation Test) engineers to develop, validate, and debug characterisation test sequences without physical access to laboratory equipment.

Overview

ThermalATE enables offline development of ATE (Automated Test Equipment) characterisation algorithms by simulating:

• Thermal Chamber - Temperature control with realistic ramp and settling behaviour
• Programmable Power Supply - Voltage/current control and measurement
• Digital Multimeter - DC voltage measurement with configurable integration time
• DUT Models - Device Under Test simulation with thermal-electrical coupling (e.g., LDO voltage regulators)

Key Features

• Coupled Physics Simulation - DUT self-heating affects electrical parameters realistically
• SCPI Protocol - Industry-standard commands for instrument control
• Hardware Abstraction - Same test code works with simulated or real instruments
• Multiple Interfaces - CLI, programmatic API, and Streamlit dashboard
• Data Persistence - SQLite for metadata, Parquet for time-series measurements

Documentation

Document	Purpose
Requirements	Defines what the system must do
Technical Specification	Specifies how to implement the system
Architecture Decisions	Explains why decisions were made

Project Status

Status: In Development

This project is currently being developed. See the requirements document for the full scope and success criteria.

Technology Stack

• Language: Python 3.11+
• Physics: NumPy, SciPy
• Configuration: Pydantic, YAML
• CLI: Typer
• Dashboard: Streamlit
• Data: SQLite, PyArrow (Parquet)

Author

Kai Chappell

Licence

TBD