Intermittent defects create a lot of frustration since they are more difficult to detect than hard defects. These intermittent problems are compounded when they escape the production process. Defective harnesses get assembled into a larger product that malfunctions only after it is delivered to the final user.

Intermittent problems can be traced back to poor design, defective components, problems with production processes, or workmanship. Sometimes intermittents are a combination of these factors and others. If you have a process that produces intermittents, then appropriate testing will find some of these defects some of the time. Why test for intermittents even when such tests cannot be counted on for 100% effectiveness? With so many root causes of intermittents that may not be anticipated, testing becomes your early warning system. Once you discover such defects, you can take action to eliminate the source of such defects as much as possible.

See our article and videos on testing intermittents at:

Testing Intermittents with a Signature 1100H+.

Some intermittent problems (opens or high resistance) might occur for small fractions of a second. These intermittents defy detection by traditional Cable/Harness testers. These short duration intermittents are missed as the tester switches to measure each connection in turn. The Touch 1, using a custom script, can perform this switching at very high speeds (about .5 millisecond per connection). For example, a 32-wire assembly could be tested for intermittents with a duration of as little as 16 milliseconds. This form of testing finds problems with connections but not insulation. Using this and other scripts with the Touch1 requires the scripting option. More details are available at:

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