Fluke900Link

A PC Software package to interface with and create test sequences for the Fluke 900 Dynamic Troubleshooter.
I am in need of an Interface Buffer, Clips and any other parts you might have as spares. Please contact me if you have spare parts!

Overview:

The Fluke 900 Dynamic Troubleshooter was a testing product created by ZTest Inc of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada and Licensed to Fluke in the early 1990's. The product had a fairly short lifespan as far as I can tell. The last software update for the Fluke 900 was v6.00 from 1992 or 1993. The 900 sits in a unique place amongst the various hardware driven test/troubleshooting tools such as the Fluke 9010A and Fluke 9100. Where the 9010/9100 are CPU-Centric... the 900 is more like a BK Precision 560 which is an in-circuit IC tester. The largest distinction between the BK Precision 650 and the 900 is that while the 900 can use a reference device on unit for comparison, it can also lean upon a fairly large simulation library of about 500 devices where you can test in-circuit ICs using mathematical comparisons to outputs from an oboard FPGA. This distinction makes the process of testing entire PCB sets a substantially easier process. The other advanced feature of the 900 is that the developer of the test program can make intelligent test sequences that take into account PASS FAIL results to walk through a flowchart of branching tests. This allows troubleshooting to start logically at the CLOCK, CPU BUFFERS, RAM, ROM, etc and sequentially move into specifica areas of circuitry only if there is a problem detected first. It is certainly also possible to sequentially march through each IC' on a PCB if you wish, one step at a time.

Status:

Fluke900Link is currently in development and classified as BETA. You can download the current build via the Download section but there are many features missing and the software is not nearly complete yet. If you have a Fluke900 however, please email me as I only know of about 4 people with these devices currently.

Download

Download

The app is deployed using ClickOnce and is not currently signed. You will need to go past many warnings during install because the software is not signed. There is no-malware in my software.

Current Published Version: 1.0.0.14

Checkin:Date:Comments:
Unable to connect to a repository at URL 'https://svn.askey.org:8443/svn/jesscode/Fluke900Link/Fluke900Link'

Serial Numbers

Because I love serial numbers, why don't you submit your Fluke 900 Serial Number here!

Tech Info

It is vitally important to understand that all Fluke 900's are not created equal. The later versions had extended functionality around the ability to Simulate TTL and CMOS Integrated Circuits so that a Reference Device was not required in the ZIF socket. The library of simulated IC's was around 500 at the last version and can be found in the version 5 Operators Manual at the end. While the simulation option *is not required* to test PCB's it is a nice option to have. The best way to tell which hardware options your device has is to following the steps below...
  1. Boot the Fluke 900
  2. Go into the 'System' menu (F4 Key)
  3. Go to the 2nd Page in the System Menu (ETC Key)
  4. Go into the 'Config' menu (F2 Key)
You will see the installed Hardware options here... best case is that you have the following listed
  1. HSB rev: 3
  2. 64k Shadow RAM Installed
  3. Delayed Gate Installed
  4. RD Simulation Installed

Reproduction Memory Cartridges:

The original ZTest/Fluke Memory Carts came in both 32K and 64K versions (Note: 64K Carts are only supported by units running v6.00 firmware and need to have the factory modifications ECO-016 and ECO-018 as documented in the Service Manual on page 94). The cartridges contained either one or two 62256 Static RAM's and were made non-volatile by including a Dallas DS-1221 RAM Controller and two lithium batteries. If you have an existing 32K cartridge, you can pop open the cartridge case and add an additional 62256 RAM, change one jumper and probably replace the two LM2425 batteries in order to increase the storage to 64K.

As an alternative, I thought it would be fun to make some quick reproduction cartridges that utilized non-volatile Fero-Magnetic RAM (no batteries needed). Im still working on the prototypes of this (there are pictures and more information below). I expect full replacements to be available for $99 or blank PC boards for $35.

Reference Docs: Pics
Original Cartridge Top:
Original Cartridge Bottom:
First Proto Cartridge Top:
Second Proto Cartridge Top:

Other Resources