19 — Specify the testing contract and supplier deliverables
DO-160 Display Qualification | A-P02 — Draft / Not Released
Learning objective: Write a statement of work that buys reviewable qualification evidence.
What to put in the testing contract
“The display shall meet DO-160” is a starting point for discussion, not a complete test specification. A practical purchase specification or statement of work connects the equipment requirements, environmental qualification matrix, test plan, procedures and report deliverables.
The document stack often extends beyond DO-160. For example, SAE AS8034 addresses airborne multipurpose electronic display performance, while an aircraft manufacturer’s equipment specification and interface-control document define the particular installation. Military contracts may invoke MIL-STD-810 for tailored environmental testing and MIL-STD-461 for equipment electromagnetic interference requirements. Where night vision imaging system (NVIS) compatibility is required, MIL-STD-3009 addresses aircraft lighting and display emission characteristics. Each document has a different role; select the applicable revision and requirements rather than adding a list of standards without a compliance plan. SAE AS8034, DLA MIL-STD-461, DLA MIL-STD-3009.
The following are recommended contracting topics. They are not all universal DO-160 requirements.
| Contract topic | What to specify |
|---|---|
| Applicable documents | Exact DO-160 revision and changes; customer specifications; applicable performance standards; installation requirements; document precedence and discrepancy resolution |
| Qualification matrix | Every section considered; applicability and rationale; selected categories, subtests, levels, curves, waveforms and methods; requirements satisfied; party responsible |
| Equipment boundary | Included panel, optical stack, touch hardware, controller, power supply, enclosure, cables and accessories; excluded items and simulated interfaces |
| Configuration | Part numbers, serial numbers, drawing/BOM revisions, firmware/software, manufacturing state, mounting and cooling; representation of variants and worst cases |
| Performance requirements | Numeric limits and functional criteria, their requirement IDs, measurement conditions, uncertainty decision rules, monitoring intervals and allowed recovery |
| Test articles | Quantity and rationale, allocation among tests, conditioning, accumulated exposure, destructive-test articles, spares and disposition after testing |
| Test arrangements | Fixtures, cable types and lengths, shielding, terminations, bonding, loads, input simulators, operating modes and support-equipment effects |
| Test sequence | Required order and dependencies; permitted combined tests; intermediate checks; treatment of repairs or configuration changes between tests |
| Laboratory and witnessing | Relevant capability, calibration and traceability; any required ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation scope; customer witness points and any applicable certification conformity arrangements |
| Deviations and failures | Who can authorize a procedure change, pause or retest; anomaly recording; root-cause work; corrective action; regression scope; acceptance authority |
| Deliverables | Plan and procedures, as-run records, measured data, plots, configuration evidence, calibration records, deviations, failure/retest history, final report and Environmental Qualification Form |
| Installation responsibilities | Supplier installation limits and instructions; integrator obligations for cooling, mounting, power, wiring and installed verification; responsibility for compliance submissions |
| Commercial responsibilities | Ownership and permitted reuse of data, access to raw results, record retention, schedule, included engineering support, retest costs and change pricing |
| Change control | Supplier change notification and impact assessment for panel, optical bond, touch controller, electronics, firmware, enclosure or harness substitutions |
Category letters are not a universal ranking. Select and interpret them within their own section, including any multi-character designations. “Higher category” is not a sufficient technical comparison. In DO-160G, Category X records that compliance was not demonstrated for that environmental condition; it is not a passing result or an automatic finding that the condition is irrelevant. Keep a separate applicability rationale.
A useful matrix row follows the chain:
Display requirement → environmental section and category → test configuration and method → acceptance criterion → evidence → installation limitation.
The Environmental Qualification Form summarizes the environmental coverage; it does not replace the detailed reports. Its value depends on traceability to the tested equipment and supporting evidence. RTCA Environmental Qualification Form.
Example contract wording
The following is an adaptable clause, not a complete qualification specification:
The supplier shall demonstrate that the display configuration identified in the approved configuration list meets the performance requirements referenced by the agreed Environmental Qualification Matrix under the DO-160 revision, sections, categories, methods and conditions stated in that matrix. The matrix shall identify the treatment of every environmental section, including the basis for exclusions and any proposed credit from existing evidence. Before qualification testing, the parties shall agree the test plan, procedures, operating modes, monitoring, acceptance criteria, test-article allocation and required conformity or witness arrangements. Procedure deviations, configuration changes and failures shall be recorded and dispositioned under the agreed change process. Retesting shall not erase the original results. The supplier shall deliver the as-tested configuration record, as-run procedures, results and supporting data, anomaly and retest records, final qualification report, Environmental Qualification Form, and installation limitations. Installation compliance responsibilities shall be allocated separately in the statement of work.
Quote comparison exercise
Quote A includes chamber time and a pass/fail certificate. Quote B includes procedures, article configuration records, raw traces, performance data, anomaly disposition and an Environmental Qualification Form. They may cover different work even if both say DO-160. Compare each quotation against the same matrix, acceptance requirements, witness arrangements and deliverables before comparing price.
Avoid open commercial assumptions
State who pays for fixture redesign, failed setup attempts, equipment repairs, customer changes and retests. Define what laboratory time and engineering analysis are included. State data-use rights separately from permission to redistribute licensed standards. Neither a test report purchase nor a training-course subscription automatically grants republication rights to standards figures.
Contract review output
Prepare a one-page list of unresolved technical inputs and a deliverable schedule. Mark approval or witness hold points only where the program actually requires them. If a certification conformity arrangement applies, identify who arranges it and when. A laboratory's accreditation alone does not resolve every program-specific conformity or acceptance obligation.
Contract addendum for fixed-wing and helicopter applications
The purchase specification should identify each intended aircraft application and the extent of qualification credit being purchased. The following adaptable clause supplements the general statement of work:
The supplier shall identify the fixed-wing and helicopter applications covered by the proposed environmental evidence, including aircraft type, equipment location, installation limitations and as-tested mounting and harness configuration. Vibration evidence shall identify the DO-160 category, applicable curve/zone, frequency basis, operating conditions, performance and endurance stages, and resonance/control records. Any unknown-frequency helicopter method or tailored profile shall state its permitted coverage and agreed basis.
The qualification matrix shall separately identify equipment electromagnetic tests, aircraft HIRF and lightning substantiation responsibilities, and installed compatibility checks. Changes in mounting isolation, bonding, cable length, shielding, termination or aircraft application shall receive a documented impact assessment before existing evidence is credited.
Request a coverage comparison if a supplier offers a single “airplane and helicopter qualified” report. Require the integrator to provide the missing aircraft allocations and define who closes each installation assumption. Do not buy an unsupported claim that a larger overall vibration g value or one higher RF field value covers every other profile.
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