Over the last few decades, in-circuit test (ICT) has been integral to the growth of the electronics industry. Now though, because of rapidly accelerating speeds and new levels of complexity, chips, circuit boards and systems are moving beyond the reach of the intrusive probes and bedof-nails fixtures that ICT depends on. This white paper explains the technical and economic factors that are contributing to the gradual but inevitable demise of ICT and how non-intrusive board test (NBT) has emerged as a more cost-effective and thorough test technology for the manufacturing floor. Certainly ICT will continue to have its place, albeit current trends indicate it will soon be relegated to special case testing or for testing rudimentary circuit board designs. Simply stated, electronics manufacturers (original equipment manufacturers or original design manufacturers) are finding it increasingly difficult to make a credible business case for ICT, especially when NBT offers better test coverage and a lower cost structure.
