The Pocket Tester scan tool rein-forces a trend—toward miniatur-ization—that’s timely for all MOTORreaders, especially those who ser-vice lots of Honda/Acura vehicles. Teradyne Diagnostic Solutions, a

British electronics company, developed this prod-uct around a Hewlett-Packard iPAC pocket com-puter. This little scanner, which runs on MicrosoftWindows for Pocket PC 2003, gives aftermarkettechnicians the same scan tool capabilities thatHonda/Acura dealer techs enjoy.

But first things first. Teradyne is a globalsupplier of assembly-line as well as shop-leveldiagnostic equipment. Some of its customersinclude Aston-Martin, DaimlerChrysler, Ford,Honda, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo cars.Since 2003, the official Honda/Acura dealer-ship scanner has been a Teradyne “tablet”tester (so named because it looks like a tablet).

Pocket computers have become a fact oflife. You can’t go anywhere today without see-ing someone fiddling with one. Within thelast few years, companies such as Injectocleanand OTC brought this technology to our baysby putting powerful scope and scanner capa-bilities into pocket computers such as theHandspring Visor PDA. Teradyne has contin-ued the trend by basically packaging its tablettester into an HP iPAC that’s customized forshop use (photo 1).

Some techs tell us they’ll never use a pock-et PC in the shop because the thing’s just toosmall. But others brag about the maneuver-ability and convenience a pocket PC affordsthem. They say they prefer using the smallerunits during road tests and find them easier tostow away and secure when they’re not in use.

Depending on the age of your existing scantool, a pocket PC may operate much fasterand cost less to update. Any pocket PC we’reaware of—including Teradyne’s—is updatedvia the Internet instead of data cards or car-tridges.

Another trend is toward more softwareavailability. Back in December 1997, I report-ed in this column that Vetronix was releasingboth Honda and Toyota OE-level software forits Mastertech scan tool. Now Teradynebrings us a PC-based scanner with dealer-level software. Apparently, Honda recognizedthat new-car dealers simply can’t handle allthe nonwarranty repair work—something theindependents have known for years. Ofcourse, the easier it is to get a Honda/Acuravehicle repaired, the more brand-loyal thosevehicle owners tend to be.

Anyway, this Pocket Tester can function asa simple, generic OBD II scanner. But itsstrongest suit is its robust, dealer-level test ca-pabilities. It works on everything from theearliest serial-data Honda cars (1992 Civicand Prelude) up to the current machinery. Itcommunicates with on-board computers suchas the engine, trans and body controllers, not

The trend toward miniaturization of diagnostic

equipment continues. OE-level Honda/Acura

software running on a pocket PC is the latest entry.

DanMarinucci

Foreign Service

14 April 2005

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shot function. His older, traditionalscanner could record 30 seconds ofdata; the Pocket Tester can record 3minutes. Both scanners can be setup to record on the user’s commandor with the onset of a trouble code.But you can quickly set up thePocket Tester to begin recordingdata based on readings from eitherone or two sensors. For example,you can program it to begin a snap-shot when MAP voltage exceeds2.00 volts and coolant temperaturereaches 180°. Or, tell it to recordwhen the TPS signal reaches 3.00volts. Think how much road-testtime this custom setup could save!

Like other automakers, Honda hasexpanded its use of multiplexing, es-pecially on body-related componentssuch as HVAC controls, power win-dows and door locks. G.M. said thatconnecting the Pocket Tester to theOBD II connector and accessing themultiplex system greatly simplifiesdiagnosis on vehicles such as 2003and newer Hondas. “I can commandthe appropriate body controller to dosomething such as operate the leftwindow or the right door lock. First,the Pocket Tester’s screen shows methe command I’ve given as well asthe result of the command. I also

to mention multiplex and CAN sys-tems. Among many other chores, itperforms specialized diagnostics andservices such as reflashing an ECM,troubleshooting an ignition immobi-lizer, programming an immobilizerkey, providing bidirectional controlon evaporative emissions solenoidsand so forth.

Our colleague G.M. is a veteranHonda dealer technician who’s wit-nessed the transition from traditionalscanners to PC-based equipmentsuch as Teradyne’s tablet tester. But Ialso sought his input because he’ssharp and has had much more shopexperience with the Pocket Testerthan I have. I use his initialshere to protect his anonymity,at his request. The first thingG.M. confirmed was my gutimpression that the PocketTester mirrored the speed, fea-tures and capability of anotherPC-based unit, the tablettester. The next thing he em-phasized was how fast and ver-satile the Pocket Tester is.

For instance, one of his fa-vorite Pocket Tester featuresis a high-speed data snapshotthat he can utilize with linegraphs. Obviously, it’s mucheasier to watch for a dip orglitch in a line graph than it isto catch that same problem onan alphanumeric display. Thehigh-speed snapshot with theline graph has proven veryuseful for diagnosing failingABS wheel speed sensors.

Lately, G.M. told me, he’sbeen using the high-speed snapshotand line graphs to diagnose no-code,light-throttle surging conditionscaused by a failing EGR valve. Heputs the ECM-to-EGR command sig-nal on one line graph and the EGRlift sensor signal on another. When hetakes a high-speed snapshot of theseduring a road test, the EGR com-mand signal is smooth and consistentbut the EGR position signal is erratic.Bingo! Replacing the EGR valve ren-ders two smooth signals and asmooth-running car.

G.M. also praised the improvedcapability and flexibility of the snap-

Foreign Service

have the visual confirmation ofwatching the power window anddoor lock operate when I tell it to,”he explained.

Of course, the fact that this is afull-fledged HP iPAC pocket PCmeans you also have all the featuresthese devices provide, includingtechie stuff such as Bluetooth wire-less communications. However,some pocket PC traits could intimi-date or frustrate some readers. Forinstance, the Pocket Tester retainsthe iPAC’s touch-screen format, witha replaceable transparent cover pro-tecting the main screen. Touchingthe screen with your finger will suf-

fice for some commands.But unless you have pen-

cil-point finger tips, you’llneed the little pointer or sty-lus shown in photo 2 to domost of your work on thePocket Tester. Getting usedto the feel of the stylus is onething; keeping track of it in abusy repair shop may be an-other. There are storagenotches for the stylus on theside of the Pocket Tester’shusky protective case but nokey ring or necklace attach-ment for it.

Getting comfortable withthe small on-screen keyboardalso could be a hassle forsome older techs. What’smore, someone at Teradyneought to wise up and programthis otherwise impressive scantool to remember the lastVIN the user entered. Unless

I missed something somewhere, youhave to enter a VIN every time youuse the Honda diagnostics part ofthe program.

However, if these are the worst is-sues the manufacturer has to ad-dress, it still has a very powerful andpractical Honda/Acura scanner here.As of press time, the only place youcan source the Pocket Tester is viaTeradyne’s website (www.teradyne-pocket-tester.com). Details on pric-ing are available there.

If you’re serious about Honda/Acura diagnostics, this package maybe just what the doctor ordered.

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