Brassboard
Encyclopedia
A brassboard or brass board is an experimental or demonstration test model, intended for field testing outside the laboratory
environment. A brassboard follows an earlier prototyping stage called a breadboard
. A brassboard contains both the functionality and approximate physical configuration of the final operational product. Unlike breadboards, brassboards typically recreate geometric and dimensional constraints of the final system which are critical to its performance, as is the case in radio frequency
systems. While representative of the physical layout of the production-grade product, a brassboard will not necessarily incorporate all final details, nor represent the physical size and quality level of the final deliverable product.
Exact definition of a brassboard depends on the industry and has changed with time. A 1992 guide book on proposal preparation
defined a brassboard or a breadboard as "a laboratory or shop working model that may or may not look like the final product or system, but that will operate in the same way as the final system". The definition of a
breadboard was further narrowed to purely electronic systems, while a brassboard was treated as "a similar arrangement for hydraulic, pneumatic or mechanically interconnected components".
In modern system-on-a-chip
prototyping, brassboard is defined as a second prototyping stage that follows engineering validation boards (EVB) and precedes wingboards and final pre-production samples. Typically, the board area decreases four times with each of these steps, so a brassboard is one fourth as large as an EVB, four times larger than a wingboard and around sixteen times larger than a production device. A modern brassboard printed circuit board
typically contains ten conductive layers while a considerably larger EVB typically has eighteen (it needs larger and more sophisticated ground plane
s to overcome the effects of larger area and longer connecting tracks).
Laboratory
A laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
environment. A brassboard follows an earlier prototyping stage called a breadboard
Breadboard
A breadboard is a construction base for prototyping of electronics. The term is commonly used to refer to solderless breadboard ....
. A brassboard contains both the functionality and approximate physical configuration of the final operational product. Unlike breadboards, brassboards typically recreate geometric and dimensional constraints of the final system which are critical to its performance, as is the case in radio frequency
Radio frequency
Radio frequency is a rate of oscillation in the range of about 3 kHz to 300 GHz, which corresponds to the frequency of radio waves, and the alternating currents which carry radio signals...
systems. While representative of the physical layout of the production-grade product, a brassboard will not necessarily incorporate all final details, nor represent the physical size and quality level of the final deliverable product.
Exact definition of a brassboard depends on the industry and has changed with time. A 1992 guide book on proposal preparation
Request for Proposal
A request for proposal is issued at an early stage in a procurement process, where an invitation is presented for suppliers, often through a bidding process, to submit a proposal on a specific commodity or service. The RFP process brings structure to the procurement decision and is meant to...
defined a brassboard or a breadboard as "a laboratory or shop working model that may or may not look like the final product or system, but that will operate in the same way as the final system". The definition of a
breadboard was further narrowed to purely electronic systems, while a brassboard was treated as "a similar arrangement for hydraulic, pneumatic or mechanically interconnected components".
In modern system-on-a-chip
System-on-a-chip
A system on a chip or system on chip is an integrated circuit that integrates all components of a computer or other electronic system into a single chip. It may contain digital, analog, mixed-signal, and often radio-frequency functions—all on a single chip substrate...
prototyping, brassboard is defined as a second prototyping stage that follows engineering validation boards (EVB) and precedes wingboards and final pre-production samples. Typically, the board area decreases four times with each of these steps, so a brassboard is one fourth as large as an EVB, four times larger than a wingboard and around sixteen times larger than a production device. A modern brassboard printed circuit board
Printed circuit board
A printed circuit board, or PCB, is used to mechanically support and electrically connect electronic components using conductive pathways, tracks or signal traces etched from copper sheets laminated onto a non-conductive substrate. It is also referred to as printed wiring board or etched wiring...
typically contains ten conductive layers while a considerably larger EVB typically has eighteen (it needs larger and more sophisticated ground plane
Ground plane
In electrical engineering, a ground plane is an electrically conductive surface.-Radio antenna theory :In telecommunication, a ground plane structure or relationship exists between the antenna and another object, where the only structure of the object is a structure which permits the antenna to...
s to overcome the effects of larger area and longer connecting tracks).