
Application Note
www.tektronix.com/usb4
In-Rush Current Check
Because USB 2.0 is a hot-pluggable technology, extreme
care is required to ensure that the current drawn by a device
does not exceed a specified limit. If the current drawn exceeds
a specified value, the operation of other USB 2.0 devices
connected to the bus may be hampered. The in-rush current
check is performed for both self-powered and bus-powered
devices to verify that the device-under-test (DUT) does not
draw too much current when plugged into the port of a hub.
Typically, one expects a sharp intake of current when a device
is plugged in. One may observe small humps or perturbations
in the current trace depending on when the device is reset.
Theoretically, an in-rush current check involves the calculation
of the integral of current over a certain period of time (bounded
by the location of two vertical cursors on the oscilloscope).
The USB 2.0 specification dictates that the total charge drawn
by the device should be less than or equal to 51.5 uC for a
V
BUS
value of 5.15 V. (The waiver limit for this test is less than
150 uC).
Test Equipment
The in-rush current check requires a real-time oscilloscope,
such as a DPO7254, and current probes, like the TCP0030.
This test also requires test software and a test fixture, such as
the option USB compliance test package. The TDSUSB2 test
package can be used to automatically set up the oscilloscope
for the in-rush current check. This test package provides direct
readout of Charge (uC), Capacitance (uF) and an automatic
indication of pass or fail.
Drop Test
The USB 2.0 specification requires powered USB ports to
provide a V
BUS
between 4.75 and 5.25 V while bus-powered
hubs maintain a V
BUS
at 4.4 V or greater. Drop testing
evaluates V
BUS
under both no-load and full-load (100 mA or
500 mA, as appropriate) conditions.
V
drop
= V
upstream
— V
downstream
V
upstream
= V
BUS
at the hub's upstream connection
V
downstream
= V
BUS
at one of the hub's downstream ports
Bus-powered hubs must have a V
drop
<=100 mV between
their downstream and upstream ports when 100 mA loads are
present on their downstream ports. This requirement ensures
that the hubs will supply 4.4 V to a downstream device. Bus-
powered devices with Captive cables must have V
drop
<=
350 mV between the upstream connector and downstream
port, including the drop through the cable.
Figure 4. Illustration of a sharp intake of current using a DPO7254C.
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