Test System Starter Guide

CH2 CR Easy Touch 1100H+ 1100R+

Table of Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 1
Product Classification ................................................................................................................................ 1
Parts List .................................................................................................................................................... 1
Help/Support .............................................................................................................................................. 1
Safety Warning ............................................................................................................................................ 3
High Voltage Warning................................................................................................................................ 3
Medical Warning ........................................................................................................................................ 4
Benchtop Testers ........................................................................................................................................ 5
System Setup ............................................................................................................................................ 5
Testing process ......................................................................................................................................... 5
Reports ...................................................................................................................................................... 6
Security and Backup.................................................................................................................................. 6
Benchtop Tester Security ...................................................................................................................... 6
Benchtop Tester Database Maintenance/Backup ................................................................................. 6
Calibration .............................................................................................................................................. 6
PC Controlled Testers ................................................................................................................................ 7
System Requirements ............................................................................................................................... 7
System Setup ............................................................................................................................................ 7
Software Installation .................................................................................................................................. 7
Testing Setup Process .............................................................................................................................. 8
Performing a Test .................................................................................................................................... 10
Reports .................................................................................................................................................... 10
Security and Maintenance ....................................................................................................................... 10
easy-wire Software Security ................................................................................................................ 10
easy-wire Database Maintenance/Backup .......................................................................................... 11
Calibration ............................................................................................................................................ 11
Introduction
Congratulations on purchasing your new Cirris test system. An automated tester will help ensure quality
in the cable and harness assemblies you are building.

To test cables, start by building a test program according to the cable or harness specifications. The
tester can then analyze a cable or harness using the test program you created. Within minutes you will
know if your cable has errors and how to find and fix those errors.

Product Classification
Cirris test systems are divided into two categories:

Benchtop Testers: Testers that are self contained (these testers may still connect to a computer).

1100R+
1100H+

PC Controlled Testers: Testers that cannot work without a computer.

CR
CH2
Easy Touch

Parts List
You should have received:

Main Tester Unit

Power Cord
Probe
Software / Documentation USB
Printed Manual (if ordered)

Depending on your tester you may have received additional parts (such as expansion boxes). See your
product manual for information on these items.

In order to set up a test program (perform a Learn) you will need to provide a sample cable otherwise
you will need to set up a test program manually using a text editor (not covered in this guide). Use a cable
that you know has been wired correctly.

Help/Support
For assistance with your Cirris test system, you may:

Read detailed instructions for the tester, accessories, or software in the related product manual.
Visit www.cirris.com/learning-center to read articles on Cirris software and other testing subjects.

Test System Starter Guide Cirris Systems 2016 1

 If using Cirris easy-wire Software click the Help button at anytime to access the Help System.
Contact our technical support team:
o In the USA, call 1-800-441-9910 toll-free.
o Outside the USA, visit our Cirris website at www.cirris.com to find the Cirris office nearest
to you.

Test System Starter Guide Cirris Systems 2016 2

Safety Warning
Cirris testers are designed to be safe for operators. Injuries from test equipment are rare but do occur. For
ideas on improving safety, visit cirris.com/safety.

To reduce the risk from high voltage and other hazards, consider the following:

Training: Employers and supervisors should make sure operators are trained to use equipment and work
in a safe environment. Operators should only use equipment when they have the proper training.

Process: Design your production process to be safe. Change the process as needed to eliminate
possible hazards.

Preparation: Have safety and emergency response equipment placed in the best possible locations.
Make sure employees are trained and prepared to respond to emergencies.

High Voltage Warning

While high voltage (hipot) testing does not present a danger to healthy individuals, the occasional mild
electric shock may be experienced when the operator touches an energized connection point. Any shock
from the tester may result in a high voltage test failure.

The following are some specific safety ideas to consider for high voltage testing:

Understand the test equipment: Decrease risk by training operators to keep their hands off the cable
being tested. Touching the cable during high voltage testing could result in a mild shock.

Eliminate hazards: Plan your work area to eliminate hazards that might arise from being startled by an
unexpected electric shock.

Develop processes that increase operator safety: Be aware of operator safety especially if you have a
higher current (or higher energy) tester or use a mix of high voltage equipment. You may want to simplify
your training by standardizing on using the same safety processes for all your test stations.

Test in a dedicated area: Clearly designate an area for high voltage testing. Use safety tape and signs
to draw attention to the area and warn untrained people to keep out.

Limit access to the test area: Use ropes, ribbons, or chains to block access to large assemblies being
tested. Place the barriers so you have a four to five foot space around the high voltage area.

Alert people nearby: Use signs and lights to indicate when a high voltage test is in process.

Test only when ready: Many high voltage testers use safety switches to let nearby operators control or
abort a high voltage test. Examples of safety switches include:

Emergency Stop Switch

Key Enable Switch
Palm Switches
Safety Mats
Light Curtains

Test System Starter Guide Cirris Systems 2016 3

 Controllers

Learn more about these safety devices at cirris.com/safety.

Maintenance: When equipment is calibrated or serviced, verify the correct operation of the safety
systems before testing.

Medical Warning
Individuals wearing a cardiac pacemaker, an insulin pump, or any electronically controlled medical device
should NOT perform high voltage testing.

Children should NOT perform high voltage testing.

Test System Starter Guide Cirris Systems 2016 4

Benchtop Testers
Benchtop Testers: Testers that are self contained. (These testers may still connect to a computer and use
easy-wire Software see PC Controlled Testers for instruction.) These testers include:

1100H+
1100R+

System Setup
Each test system may have differences in setup, but all Cirris test systems follow a similar setup pattern.

1. Connect the power cord to your tester.

2. Plug the power cord into a grounded outlet (surge protector recommended).
3. Connect the probe to the tester.
4. Turn on the tester.

Testing process
Follow these steps to build a test program. Reference the product manual for further help.

1. Attach adapters and sample cable to the tester.

Note: You will need to provide a sample cable to use this

manual. Be sure the sample cable you provide has been
wired correctly.

2. Select Set Up Test Program, Create New Test, and

Learn.
SIGNATURE 1100H+
Set Preferences
Set Up Test Program
TEST: 1B4137-4Z020

3. Click Verify to check Learn instructions and correct any

inaccuracies.
4. Press Back and select Test to begin testing. CABLE LEARNED
5. Press Hipot if needed. Verify Test
6. Remove cable from tester when test finishes Good. Save Test

Note: If the test reports an error, see the product manual for TEST: 1B4137-4Z020
help.

Test System Starter Guide Cirris Systems 2016 5

Reports
Cirris benchtop testers can generate a variety of reports to help organize cable and test information. To
learn how to generate reports, see your products user manual.

Security and Maintenance

Benchtop Tester Security
Testers that do not use easy-wire Software still have customizable security settings.

1. Connect the tester to a computer that has the 1100 Utilities Application installed. (1100 Utilities
software can be downloaded from any of the 1100 tester product pages on cirris.com. For
installation information, see the product manual for an 1100 tester.)
2. On the Security Manager tab you can lock or unlock specific tester menu selections.

For more information see the testers user manual.

Benchtop Tester Database Maintenance/Backup

When using a benchtop tester, back up your database using a USB flash drive or connect the tester to a
computer. For more information, see the product manual.

Calibration
Cirris recommends the testers calibration be verified on a one-year interval. In the U.S.A. Cirris offers
complete calibration services in compliance with ANSI/NCSL Z540-1-1994 and MIL-STD 45662A.

To verify calibration and functionality, you can purchase a performance check kit. The performance check
kit has a valid calibration period of 2 years, after which it must be replaced. In addition to the performance
check kit, you need a calibrated volt meter and high voltage probe capable of measuring the highest
voltage the tester can output.

Note: In the event a Cirris tester is found to be out of calibration, there are no user adjustable
controls. The tester, or the affected portions, must be sent back to Cirris for repair.

Test System Starter Guide Cirris Systems 2016 6

PC Controlled Testers
PC Controlled Testers are testers that will only function when connected to a computer. These testers
include:

Easy Touch
CR
CH2

Other Cirris testers are capable of connecting to a computer and using easy-wire software. Use this
section if using easy-wire software for any Cirris tester connected to a computer.

System Requirements
Computer Requirements for PC Controlled Testers:

2.0 GHz min. processor speed

Windows 7, or Windows 8.1
15 GB hard drive space
4 GB RAM
256 MB min. video memory
1024 x 768 min display resolution
sound (for audible feedback)
USB 2.0 or 3.0 port

System Setup
Each Cirris test system may have slight differences in setup, but all test systems follow a similar pattern.

1. Connect the power cord to your tester.

2. Plug the power cord into a grounded outlet (surge protector recommended).
3. Connect the probe to the tester.
4. Connect the tester to the PC (turn on the PC).
5. Install the drivers and software.
6. Turn on the tester.

Software Installation

To Install Cirris easy-wire Software on a PC:

1. Exit all running Windows applications.

2. Insert the flash drive and navigate to the software, or download the software from cirris.com.
3. Continue through installation by clicking Next.
4. Read and accept the terms and conditions.
5. Read the Release Notes to learn about updates for the newly installed software version.
6. Double-click the easy-wire icon.

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 7. Fill out the necessary information in the Select Default Tester
and Frequency window.

8. In the User Login window select Master Login. Then, without a

password, click OK.

9. See the Cirris easy-wire Manual or Help System if you see an error in the Hardware Status
Update window.

10. Once youve clicked OK on status updates or if there are no

status updates, the main menu window will open.

Testing Setup Process

Follow these steps to build a test program using the easy-wire Learn feature. Reference the software
manual or help system for instructions to manually create a test program.

For the CR and CH2:

Unlike benchtop testers, the CR and CH2 testers cannot identify which connectors are attached. You will
need to add the connectors on the device-under-test (DUT) to the software before building a test
program.

1. In the main menu, click Connector Registry.

2. You must define which connector types will attach to your DUT. The connector you are using may
already exist within the Connector Library. You can search for it by typing the name of the
connector in the search box.

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 3. If your connector does not already exist you may still find it in the Connector Generator, or you
will have to add the connector to the library manually.
4. Click Create Connector. Enter the part number for the connector and select Auto-Generate using
Cirris Connector Generator.
5. If the part number still does not exist within easy-wire, enter the part number and select Create
Connector Manually. Then fill out the required information on each screen to add the connector.
o Name
o Number of pins
o Pin names
o Inclusion of connector shell

Once all connectors are registered you will need to attach them to the software using the probe.

6. Connect the fixturing to the tester and identify which connectors will attach to the device-under-
test (DUT).

Note: Fixturing is the cables and connectors that connect the

DUT to the tester.

7. Click Create Test from the main menu.

8. In Tab 1, add connectors to the test program by selecting
the connectors previously registered and clicking Add
Selected Connector Type.
9. Attach the connectors in Tab 2 by selecting the connector
and clicking Attach Connector Using Probe.
10. Using the connectors of the fixturing, probe each point in
the order specified by the software. You will hear a tone
each time a point is probed.
11. In Tab 3, leave all test defaults as they are unless you know
of a change that must be made.
12. After registering the fixturings connectors, you will connect
the DUT to the fixturing for testing.

Note: You will need to provide a sample cable as your DUT to

use this manual. Be sure the sample cable you provide has
been wired correctly

13. In Tab 4, click Learn Attached Device.

For the Easy Touch:

Attach adapters and cable the same way you would with a benchtop
tester.

From the main menu, click Create Test and select Learn Signature
Test Program in the window that opens.

For all PC Controlled Testers:

14. Configure the settings for your sample cable (see the easy-wire Manual or Help System for
setting information) and click Learn Attached Device.

Test System Starter Guide Cirris Systems 2016 9

 Easy Touch Learn Screen

CR/CH2 Learn Screen

15. Check Learn instructions and correct any inaccuracies and save the test program.

Performing a Test
1. Return to the Main Menu, select the test program from the
list, and click Test.
2. Click the Start button to begin testing.
3. Click Hipot if needed.
4. Click Done when test window shows Good. (See the easy-
wire Manual or Help System for a Bad test result.)

Reports
Cirris easy-wire software can generate a variety of reports to help organize cable and test information. To
learn how to generate reports, see your products user manual.

Security and Maintenance

easy-wire Software Security
To prevent multiple users from corrupting easy-wire test programs and results, place passwords and
customize software settings for each user. Security settings are found under Setup Security in the Utilities
menu.

New Users: New users are created by making a copy of an existing user. Select a user and click
Create New User from selected user. You can then give the selected user a new name or title
and customize passwords and security.
Passwords: Select an existing user and click Change Password for selected user. Type the
desired password in the spaces provided.
Customizations: In the Security Settings panel, check the box to enable a user access to the
setting. An empty box means the user does not have access to that feature.

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 easy-wire Database Maintenance/Backup
To help protect against possible loss of data, Cirris recommends backing up your database regularly. This
is done through easy-wire by clicking Database Maintenance in the Utilities menu.

Under the Backup tab, select a time for automatic backups to occur, or backup manually by
clicking Backup Database.
Other tabs in this window allow you to maintain, clean up, and find information about your
database. See the easy-wire User Manual to learn more about these other tabs.

Calibration
Cirris recommends the testers calibration be verified on a one-year interval. In the U.S.A. Cirris offers
complete calibration services in compliance with ANSI/NCSL Z540-1-1994 and MIL-STD 45662A.

To verify calibration and functionality, you can purchase a performance check kit. The performance check
kit has a valid calibration period of 2 years, after which it must be replaced. In addition to the performance
check kit, you need a calibrated volt meter and high voltage probe capable of measuring the highest
voltage the tester can output.

Note: In the event a Cirris tester is found to be out of calibration, there are no user adjustable
controls. The tester, or the affected portions, must be sent back to Cirris for repair.

Test System Starter Guide Cirris Systems 2016 11