Abstract :
This is the first of a series of articles which will present a system´s perspective for designing instrumentation and contains heuristics, case studies, and examples. Each article will focus on one part of designing and building electronic devices. I will examine those issues that we often overlook or dismiss when designing instrumentation, and apply a view of the product life cycle. The articles will cover the entire cycle-design, test, manufacture, and service-with such subjects as documentation, the human interface, software, packaging, cooling, and power. In this article I address a few issues common to every design
