February 2016
28
We talked with Jörg Fries, Vice President Oscil-
loscopes, and Mathias Leutiger, Director of
Product Management Oscilloscopes, on the
launch of the new R&S Scope Rider RTH about
the reasons for this new product placement.
B
&
S-ECE:
With the R&S Scope Rider, Rohde
& Schwarz is breaking new ground in the
handheld oscilloscope market. How did you
come to this decision?
Jörg Fries:
Looking at the market, it quickly
becomes clear that there has been no inno-
vation in the area of handheld oscilloscopes
for many years now. Of course, competitors
offer diverse instruments. But none of them
can compare with the functionality and ver-
satility of our product. This is because with
the R&S Scope Rider, we have developed
an oscilloscope that can be used for mobile
maintenance and service tasks as well as for
lab applications. The time is ripe for a scope
in this class.
Mathias Leutiger:
Field applications are gain-
ing in complexity. And even machinery on the
production floor employs increasingly com-
plex electronics. These environments call for a
portable instrument capable of testing the rel-
evant functionality. Competitors have not yet
addressed this need at all. We put our exper-
tise gained with the R&S RTO and R&S RTE
lab oscilloscopes into the new development.
The result is an instrument in the handheld
class that sets entirely new performance stan-
dards. Rohde & Schwarz isn’t exactly new to
the handheld business, by the way. We’ve been
delivering portable products for various appli-
cations since 2002.
B
&
S-ECE:
Rohde & Schwarz has been in the
scope business for only a few years and is now
once again breaking new ground with its R&S
Scope Rider. Why do you believe this is the
right path to brand awareness?
Mathias Leutiger:
With the R&S Scope Rider,
we have an exceptional instrument that serves
a broad range of industries and can be used by
engineers, specialists, and technicians alike.
This provides us with an enormous opportu-
nity to promote recognition.
B
&
S-ECE:
Why has Rohde & Schwarz decided
to bring a handheld instrument to market in
place of a high-end scope?
Jörg Fries:
We want to offer a complete range
of products in the oscilloscope market, and
our portfolio is open to expansion in any
direction. The launch of the R&S Scope Rider,
in keeping with our claim of technology lead-
ership in every product segment, represents
a step that is consistent with our strategy.
Given the good price/performance ratio of
the product and based on our sales estimates,
we expect that the Rohde & Schwarz name
will gain in recognition, not only in labs, but
also in segments where we are better known
as a high-end provider. Another objective is
to open up especially the large-volume mar-
kets with our portfolio expansions, and thanks
to the R&S Scope Rider we now address over
60 percent of the global market. However, we
haven’t lost sight of the market for high-end
oscilloscopes – we promise.
B
&
S-ECE:
The R&S Scope Rider excels
through its performance, versatility and
usability. Why do you find these criteria so
important?
Mathias Leutiger:
In the market for elec-
tronic service and installation tasks, there is
an increasing demand for instruments that
offer a broad range of measurement options
and can be operated independently from
the mains supply - i.e. highly versatile, bat-
tery-powered instruments. However, versa-
tility must be coupled with easy and intuitive
operation so as to minimize the obstacles
associated with measurements and to permit
efficient completion of tasks. High perfor-
mance is an important factor in bridging the
gap between what we know is needed and
what is currently offered in this class of instru-
ments. Performance features include proto-
col analysis capabilities, fast response times, a
high acquisition rate of 50,000 waveforms per
second, and a 10-bit A/D converter.
Jörg Fries:
A fully isolated instrument is a
definite plus in the field, especially when
working with high voltages. The R&S Scope
Rider satisfies measurement category CAT
IV requirements and can perform measure-
ments up to 600V at the sources of low volt-
age installations, offering users the utmost in
safety. We also focused on a rugged design for
harsh environments. The IP51-certified hous-
ing provides protection against environmental
hazards such as dust and dripping water. The
handheld oscilloscope has passed all mechan-
ical load tests in line with military standards.
Its usability is also exceptional.
B
&
S-ECE:
What is so special about the instru-
ment usability?
Mathias Leutiger:
The R&S Scope Rider is
equipped with a touch-screen, plus it features
large buttons – an absolute must for use with
gloves. Test reports are also easy to create.
For example, immediately after obtaining a
measurement result, the user simply presses
a button to generate a report. The instrument
additionally has an integrated WLAN inter-
face that can be configured as a hotspot for
remote control of the scope. This means that it
can be located at the measurement site while
the user operates it remotely via a tablet or
smartphone from a safe distance, e.g. on the
other side of a protective fence.
B
&
S-ECE:
One distinctive feature of the
Scope Rider is the long battery life. How is
this ensured?
Mathias Leutiger:
We have been active in the
handheld market since 2002, and so we’ve got
a few years of experience in this field. Our
electronic design and power management are
key. We know the power consumption of each
and every component, and we know what
components can be switched off for specific
applications.
Jörg Fries:
On average, we provide a runtime
of over four hours. We know that other oscil-
loscopes can offer a longer runtime, but our
instrument lets users complete their measure-
ment tasks faster and more accurately. On top
of this, the brilliant display screen provides
excellent readability, so users can confidently
read their results at any time.
Figure 2. Jörg Fries, Vice President
Oscilloscopes
Figure 3. Mathias Leutiger, Director of
Product Management Oscilloscopes
