Automated power measurements with Otii and Raspberry Pi
Power measurements in functional testing run on Raspberry Pi
Reliable testing is essential for ensuring embedded devices perform as intended — from smart homes to industrial systems. The Raspberry Pi offers a low-cost, portable, and flexible solution for automating functional tests, both in the lab and in the field. With its GPIO interfaces, broad software support, and active community, it can be an ideal tool for efficient, repeatable embedded and IoT device validation.
The Otii software adds support for automated functional testing with Raspberry Pi, making it easier to integrate comprehensive testing into your development workflow.
Note that the Otii release for Raspberry Pi includes only Otii TCP server, not the Otii Desktop application.
Products needed
Get started
Set up a Raspberry Pi 4 or 5 as a test machine to run automated benchmark testing with the Otii Product Suite:
- Set up a Raspberry Pi.
- Wire up the entire system, including your device under test (DUT)
- Download and install the Otii server within the Raspberry Pi.
- Run the scripts and start automating your recordings.
Installation guide
Requirements for the setup and the step-by-step installation can be found in the Documents.
Otii server will run on a Raspberry Pi 4/5 with less than 8 GB RAM, but it is not recommended.Running the system on an SD card will degrade performance, and the memory card will likely quickly wear out. Use the USB SSD disk instead, as recommended.Otii 3 Server is a 64-bit application. Therefore, the 64-bit version of the Raspberry Pi OS is a must.Installing Raspberry Pi OS on the SSD Disk
To set up your Raspberry Pi with an SSD, start by plugging the SSD disk into your computer via USB. Download, install, and run Raspberry Pi Imager. Within the Imager, select your device as Raspberry Pi 4 or 5, choose Raspberry Pi OS (64-bit) as the operating system, and assign the storage to the SSD disk. Once everything is selected, click “NEXT” and in the next window, click “EDIT SETTINGS” under “Use OS customization.”
In the GENERAL tab, configure the hostname, username, password, SSID, network password, Wireless LAN country, time zone, and keyboard layout. In the SERVICE tab, enable SSH and select “Use password authentication.” Save your changes, and when prompted, click “YES” to apply the custom settings.
A warning will appear to confirm that you want to proceed, as it will overwrite existing data on the disk. Confirm by clicking “YES” and entering your computer password. The system will then download the OS and write it to the SSD disk, a process that will take a few minutes. Once completed, you will see a message indicating that the disk can be removed.
Finally, connect the SSD to the Raspberry Pi, turn it on, wait a few seconds, and then access it via SSH.
Wiring up
To wire up the system, first ensure you have all the necessary hardware components on hand. Begin by connecting the SSD disk to the bottom USB 3 port of the Raspberry Pi, without powering it up. Next, using the USB cable provided in the Otii hardware box, connect the USB output to the Otii hardware box and the USB Type A output to the top USB 3 port of the Raspberry Pi.
Power the Otii hardware with an external DC power supply, ensuring it meets the required specifications; once powered, the LED on the front of the Otii hardware should light up. Then, supply power to the Raspberry Pi via its USB-C power supply port, ensuring the power parameters are optimal: 5V and at least 3A (5A for Raspberry Pi 5).
Once the system is connected, it should look like this:
Finally, connect the Device Under Test (DUT) to the system, configuring it to work with UART configuration to allow debugging of incoming messages and enabling automation of processes based on these messages.
Access Raspberry Pi using SSH
To access your Raspberry Pi via SSH after powering it up, first ensure you have an SSH client like Putty or Termius installed. If not, download, install, and open your preferred SSH client. In the connection configuration, set the hostname to the one assigned in Raspberry Pi Imager (e.g., raspberry.local) or use the IP address of the Raspberry Pi. To find the IP address, you can use network scanning tools like Fing. Set the port to 22 and the connection type to SSH.
After configuring these settings, follow the specific steps for your SSH client to establish the connection. Once connected, enter the previously assigned username and password (e.g., pi.qoitech). You should now be interacting directly with the Raspberry Pi.
