Pickering Interfaces

Pickering Interfaces is a test and measurement company headquartered in Clacton-on-Sea, United Kingdom. Pickering designs, manufactures and markets a range of switching, simulation and cabling products in the LXI, PXI, and PCI platforms. These products are sold into the functional test, hardware-in-the-loop simulation (HILS) and design verifications markets.

Pickering is a privately owned company with design and manufacturing facilities in Clacton-on-Sea, UK and Trinec in the Czech Republic, together with additional company operated direct sales and support operations in the USA (East and West Coast), Germany, France, Sweden and China.

Company history

• 1968 - Pickering Electronics company formed to design and manufacture high reliability reed relays for the new Automatic Test Equipment market.
• 1988 - Pickering Interfaces formed as a sister company and launches its first product an IEEE-488 controlled modular switching system, System 10, in the 3U modular format.
• 1990 - High performance IEEE-488 switching solution, System 20, launched in the 6U modular format.
• 1995 - High-density VXI Switching module range, System 30, released.
• 1998 - First PXI switch card released, System 40.
• 2000 - Pickering enter the PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) switching card market with System 50.
• 2002 - Pickering release the BRIC range of ultra high-density switch modules in the PXI format with over 4000 relays per module, the highest density available in any test platform.
• 2005 - Pickering now have released over 500 PXI Modules .
• 2005 - Pickering and Agilent were the first companies to release LXI certified products , Pickering with the 60-100 modular switching product available with over 500 switch cards at launch.
• 2007 - Many additional LXI matrix, microwave, RF, optical, high voltage and power switching products released.
• 2009 - The company introduced Built In Relay Self Test (BIRST) into its PXI Matrix product line.
• 2011 - Autotestcon Conference/Exposition, Baltimore, September 12: Pickering Interfaces launch 13 new PXI/LXI products .
• 2013 - Pickering Interfaces launch 13 new PXI, LXI & PCI products
• 2014 - Partnership with OPAL-RT TECHNOLOGIES for Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) Fault Insertion testing.
• 2014 - Pickering announces significant milestone of offering over 1,000 PXI modules
• 2014 - Pickering Interfaces launch 17 new PXI & PCI products
• 2015 - Pickering Interfaces introduces eBIRST Switching System Test Tools for PXI, LXI & PCI products.
• 2016 - Pickering Interfaces introduces Switch Path Manager Signal Routing Software.
• 2016 - Pickering Interfaces introduces Cable Design Tool an online tool to create customized cable assemblies.
• 2016 - Pickering Interfaces introduces PXI Thermocouple Simulator Modules ideal for simulating the operation of a thermocouple.
• 2016 - Pickering Interfaces introduces 2-Slot USB/LXI Modular Chassis a small lightweight form factor for portable, benchtop, and, space restrictive applications.

Principal product range

Pickering's primary products are in the PXI, LXI and PCI platforms, specifically in switching, programmable resistors, attenuators, power supplies, basic instrumentation and cabling for these products.

Pickering Interfaces group of companies

• Pickering Interfaces Ltd, Clacton-on-Sea, England.
• PIckering Interfaces Inc, Grant Pass, OR, USA.
• Pickering Interfaces s.r.o., Trinec, Czech Republic.
• Pickering Interfaces GmbH, Haar-Salmdorf, Munich, Germany.
• Pickering Interfaces SARL, Noisel, Paris, France.
• Pickering Interfaces AB, Varberg, Sweden.
• 品英仪器（北京）有限公司, 北京, China.

Test industry associations

• Pickering are Strategic members of the LXI consortium, .
• Sponsor level members of the PXI Systems Alliance,

External links

• Pickering Interfaces web site
• Pickering Electronics reed relay web site
• PXI book - an overview of the PXI standard
• LXI book - an overview of the LXI standard