Episode 1 - Sony TV
How does Sony test televisions? A Missile Impact Test, a Liquid Drop Test, a Pink Noise Test, and much, much more...
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Sony performs hundreds of tests on televisions to make sure they are safe and reliable products. Here are just a few of them.
Electro-Static Gun
The Electro-Static Gun is the tool Sony uses to build up a safe charge similar to a static shock you get when you touch an electric appliance. The tester discharges it on the TV set to make sure there is no misoperation or failure.
Lightening Surge Test
This test is similar to the Electro-Static test, but it involves administering a large, heavy surge of electric energy to simulate a lightning bolt.Sony Safety Tip: Unplug your electronics, if there are heavy surges due to lightning.
Electromagnetic Compatibility Tests
In an electrically quiet chamber, shielded to prevent outside interference, testers measure and find the maximum radio frequency the TV set emits to ensure a product will work with other electronics typically found in a consumer’s home. So when you walk by your tv with a ghetto blaster it doesn't interfere with the tv.Safety Tip #1 - If you see a thin black line scrolling across the screen this means there's electronic interference with your TV set. Try turning off any flourescent lights or electronic gadgets.
Missile Impact / Liquid Nitrogen Test
A missile attached to a pendulum strikes the TV screen. The testers place barriers at measured distances in front of the television to capture the glass that comes forward after the impact to be sure that no glass will injure someone sitting at a normal viewing position, one or two feet in front of the TV.
Liquid Drop Test
Sony pours salted water (salt makes water more conductive) onto the television to cause a short to ensure that if a television owner should accidentally spill liquid onto the set, it will shut down without shock or fire hazard.
Abnormal Test
Testers cause each electronic component in a TV to fail to ensure that when such a failure occurs, the set goes into a normal shut down or safety mode, and that no fire, smoke or shock hazard happens.
High Voltage / High Altitude Short Test
Testers poke an insulated shorting stick in the high voltage area to test that all the insulators and components in that area don’t smoke, break down or catch fire. Also they perform high altitude tests to ensure safety in areas well above sea level.
Enclosure Impact Test
Because people drop all types of things onto their televisions, Sony does this test in which the TV cabinet is impacted repeatedly with a steal ball from every side. After the test, there can’t be any hole in the cabinet big enough for a small child’s finger to reach through and touch live electronic components.
Handle Test
This safety and reliability test makes sure the handle (used by owners when moving the set) will be reliable for many years. Testers put three times the weight of the TV on top of it, and suspend it from the handles alone.
Drop Test
In this reliability test, the TV is dropped on all sides and corners from a certain height repeatedly, then it is tested to be sure it still works.
Vibration Test
Because televisions are shipped by truck, this test simulates those conditions, placing stacks of boxed TVs on a large plate programmed with various vibrations to test that the sets can withstand the trip and still operate.
Cold / Hot Temperature Simulation Test
The cold and heat tests are performed in thermal chambers with temperatures ranging from extremely cold to extremely hot.
HALT Test
In the Highly Accelerated Life Test, Sony applies heat and cold, vibration, shock, high and low power until the unit breaks to find the design’s weakest link. Once found, it is fixed. Then they run the test again and again until they have an exceptionally reliable product.
Picture Quality Evaluation Test
This involves a battery of many tests, where Sony devotes a lot of time to ensure high quality television performance. They look at brightness, contrast, colour and resolution.Sony Tip: One of the first indications that your picture tube is failing is the colour of your screen will be tinged green or red.
