A test bench or testing workbench is an environment used to verify the correctness or soundness of a design or model.
The term has its roots in the testing of electronic devices, where an engineer would sit at a lab bench with tools for measurement and manipulation, such as
oscilloscopes,
multimeter
A multimeter is a measuring instrument that can measure multiple electrical properties. A typical multimeter can measure voltage, resistance, and current, in which case it is also known as a volt-ohm-milliammeter (VOM), as the unit is equipped w ...
s, soldering irons, wire cutters, and so on, and manually verify the correctness of the
device under test A device under test (DUT), also known as equipment under test (EUT) and unit under test (UUT), is a manufactured product undergoing testing, either at first manufacture or later during its life cycle as part of ongoing functional testing and calibra ...
(DUT).
In the context of software or firmware or hardware engineering, a test bench is an environment in which the product under development is tested with the aid of software and hardware tools. The software may need to be modified slightly in some cases to work with the test bench but careful coding can ensure that the changes can be undone easily and without introducing bugs.
The term "test bench" is used in digital design with a
hardware description language
In computer engineering, a hardware description language (HDL) is a specialized computer language used to describe the structure and behavior of electronic circuits, and most commonly, digital logic circuits.
A hardware description language en ...
to describe the test code, which instantiates the DUT and runs the test.
An additional meaning for "test bench" is an isolated, controlled environment, very similar to the production environment but neither hidden nor visible to the general public, customers etc. Therefore making changes is safe, because final users are not involved.
See also
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Sandbox (computer security)
In computer security, a sandbox is a security mechanism for separating running programs, usually in an effort to mitigate system failures and/or software vulnerabilities from spreading. The isolation metaphor is taken from the idea of children w ...
*
Test harness In software testing, a test harness or automated test framework is a collection of software and test data configured to test a program unit by running it under varying conditions and monitoring its behavior and outputs. It has two main parts: the t ...
References
Electronic test equipment
Software testing
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