Parallel plate transmission line tester - Notes and design data

Design data are provided for a particular type of parallel plate transmission line tester, namely the closed triple plate. The advantages of this configuration over the open double or open triple systems are enumerated. Attention is also given to the usefulness of this configuration for additional testing of protected or unprotected composite panels. The essential feature of the closed triple plate systems is that there is a current pulse generator at one end of the system feeding current between the center or top plane and the test bench ground plane to a waveshaping resistor at the far end. This tester solves most of the diagnostic problems (especially the large interference signals) that arise from the testing of the subsystem, since hard-wired diagnostics can be utilized quite freely for monitoring its performance.